Naturalism In Michelangelo's Pieta

“Pieta”
Pieta is a common theme of the Virgin Mary holding the lifeless body of Christ after his crucifixion that was common in paintings and sculptures in Germany and France. What Michelangelo did was incorporated those with elements with the naturalism of the High Renaissance. “Pieta” was initially created for a French Cardinal’s funeral but it also was a depiction of Michelangelo’s devotion to his faith. Michelangelo transformed marble into something that evokes contemplation and compassion. First one would question the youthfulness in Mary’s face as she is her holding her son who looks to be well beyond her years. Michelangelo made her a chaste woman; a virgin and a woman who does not age. Then one notices the disproportions of the two

Although Jesus’s body looks lifeless and his head is thrown back it almost looks as if he is in a peaceful sleep. One feels compassion and sadness for a mother who has lost her son but it is thought-provoking because Mary’s face looks as if she has gracefully accepted her son’s death but her left hand is pointing forward as if she is still comprehending what is happening. Her right-hand does not touch Christ’s body reflecting sacredness of his body. Michelangelo tried to evoke that despite the suffering of Christ there is peace in knowing that he died for his people (Khan,

David took the death of his friend Marat and painted him as a revolutionary martyr in the style similar to a Christian martyr. David wanted people to have compassion for someone who died for just believing in the Revolution. He portrayed Marat as this poor Revolutionary newspaper writer who was for the people instead of a man who supported those who had ideas of executing people to secularize the ideas of the Catholic Church. This painting is thought-provoking because David has transformed a brutal murder into a peaceful crime scene. Everything in this painting has significance. From the fatal stab wound below his clavicle and the murder weapon laying on the floor to the note Marat holds in his left hand with accused murderer’s name on it Charlotte Corday. His deathbed was a bathtub because most of his time was spent there due to him suffering from a skin disease, but in this painting, he is depicted with perfect glowing skin (Khan Academy,