A genius of the Italian Renaissance, Michelangelo is above all a great marble sculptor. He was also a painter of the Vatican, notably of the Sistine Chapel. This humanist artist, who loved Antiquity, architecture and anatomy, was responsible for some of the most beautiful works of art of the Renaissance.
The artist was born Michelangelo di Lodovico Simoni i... Voir plus >
A genius of the Italian Renaissance, Michelangelo is above all a great marble sculptor. He was also a painter of the Vatican, notably of the Sistine Chapel. This humanist artist, who loved Antiquity, architecture and anatomy, was responsible for some of the most beautiful works of art of the Renaissance.
The artist was born Michelangelo di Lodovico Simoni in 1475, and was called Michelangelo by everyone. Born in Caprese, near Florence, he was the son of a magistrate and a young woman who died in infancy. Michelangelo was cared for by a nursemaid, married to a stonemason. Despite his father's disapproval, he was apprenticed to Domenico Ghirlandaio's painting studio. Recognised early on as an exceptional artist, Michelangelo entered the service of Lorenzo de' Medici, known as the Magnificent. This was a period of great joy during which the artist was taught Neoplatonic philosophy and took part in the public dissections given to Leonardo da Vinci by the hospital in Florence.
Between 1508 and 1512 he painted the Creation of Adam on the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel. In 1534, Paul III was elected pope and Michelangelo was appointed painter, sculptor and architect of the Vatican. Between 1536 and 1541, Michelangelo created The Last Judgement, commissioned by his predecessor, a massive masterpiece that was placed in the Sistine Chapel.
Although condemned by the Inquisition, his homosexuality is well known. In love with Tommaso dei Cavalieri, he composed many poems for her and it was not uncommon for him to include sexual references. Michelangelo died in 1564 at the age of 88 and was buried with honours.
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