His first major work, a bas relief called The Madonna of the Steps, was created when he was 15, and by the time he was 21, he had arrived in Rome-where he proceeded not just to carve the famous David:īut also the Piet à, at the Basilica of St Peter, which had been commissioned by Pope Julius II.Īnd this is where our story really begins. … but went on, eventually, to specialise in his first love, which was sculpture. Still a teenager, he went to Florence, where he also learnt the art of painting… Michelangelo was born in Caprese, Tuscany, and in his childhood itself developed a love for stone carving. The camera takes us to the modern Vatican City, to Florence, and to a sleepy little town in Tuscany: some of the important places in the life of Michelangelo Buonarotti (AD 1475-1564). The film begins with a 10-minute introduction to Michelangelo. It is, instead, a wonderful look into early 16 th century Italy, the strange relationship between an artist and his patron, a man and his passion for the work he creates. In fact, it’s not really a painting lesson at all. The Agony and the Ecstasy is about how Michelangelo came to paint The Creation of Man (and the rest of the Sistine Chapel ceiling). I don’t even need to open that book now to see what The Creation of Man looked like, spread across the top half of two pages. That was where I first saw The Music Lesson, La Grande Jatte, The Arnolfini Wedding, Sunflowers… and The Creation of Man. You didn’t need to be able to read much to be able to enjoy it, because it was full of the most amazing paintings. My favourite book from my parents’ vast collection was a large Readers’ Digest coffee table book called Family Treasury of Great Painters and Great Paintings. Those books, big tomes that were all words and no pictures, were of no interest to a 6-year old who wasn’t too deeply into literature. One of the good things about growing up in a family that loved reading was that even as a child, I was surrounded by books-novels, of course and treatises on everything from Wordsworth’s poetry (thanks to my mother) to gardening and homoeopathy (thanks to my father).
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
Details
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |