Michelangelo Buonarroti. Biography. “The Descent from the Cross.” "Madonna of Bruges". “Madonna and Child.” Tondo “Madonna Doni”. Tomb of Pope Julius II.
There are many mysteries in the history of art. One of them was Michelangelo Buonarroti's unfinished painting "The Removal c cross”, which has long caused fierce controversy. Experts agreed that it corresponded to the early style of Michelangelo, but doubt remained whether it belonged to the brush of the master himself or was still a talented fake.
In 1981, all disputes were put to an end thanks to the discovery of documents proving that in 1500 Michelangelo accepted an order to create an altarpiece for the Roman church of San Agostino. In 1501, without completing the work, he left for Florence and subsequently returned the money received for the painting.
in the photo:Michelangelo Buonarroti.Tondo "Madonna"Pitti"
Life in hometown by that time it had stabilized. In 1498, as a result of the intrigues of Florentine leaders and the papal throne, the turbulent life of Savanarola and his two followers ended terrible death(they were burned in Piazza della Signoria). Centuries have passed, taking away old passions and enmity. All that's left is the memory. Today in Florence the streets of Michelangelo and Torrigiano, who disfigured him and after his expulsion became famous sculptor, lie very close, and the Florentines annually sprinkle the site of Savanarola’s death not even with roses, but with rose petals.
End XV century is significant for world art and Michelangelo with the creation of the legendary “David”.
Read more about the masterpiece of world sculpture, the “David” statue, on portal 2 queens. ru.
After David, Michelangelo created a small (1.27 meters high) sculptural group of the Madonna and Child, which he completed in 1504. This is one of Michelangelo's most believable, tender and spiritual Madonnas. The “Madonna of Bruges” is named after the Dutch city of Bruges, the former center of the Northern Renaissance, where it still adorns Notre Dame Cathedral.
“Tondo” is the name given to a round-shaped painting or relief. The famous tondo “Madonna Doni” is not quite a tondo; this work by Michelangelo is slightly larger in height than in width. It got its name in honor of Agnolo Doni, a prosperous Florentine weaver who commissioned the painting for his wedding. The original frame was probably designed by Michelangelo himself. Tondo Doni is the only completed and extant painting by the artist on wood.
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| Michelangelo Buonarroti.Tondo "Madonna Doni" |
Michelangelo's interest in painting begins with the Madonna Doni, but it should be noted that when performing paintings, he thinks like a sculptor: he created the picture in full agreement with his early reliefs Tondo Tadei and Tondo Pitti.
Michelangelo comes to realize the possibilities of painting, which can not only repeat sculpture, but also convey such complex positions of bodies that are not available in sculpture. This was the beginning of the journey to painting the ceiling Sistine Chapel.
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| Michelangelo Buonarroti.Tondo "Madonna of Tadei" |
In 1505, Michelangelo urgently left Florence for Rome. The reasons for this urgency lay in the latest changes in political life in Italy: Cardinal Giuliano della Rovere, a representative of an impoverished aristocratic family, ascended the papal throne. He began his rise in the Catholic hierarchy in 1471, when his uncle was elected pope under the name Sixtus IV . Giuliano chose the papal name Julius because all his life he tried to imitate the military genius of Julius Caesar. Like other pontiffs of that time, Pope Julius was not only a religious figure, but also a military leader. During his pontificate, the warlike Julius II personally led the papal troops in a number of military campaigns and managed to annex a large territory in northern Italy to the papal state. This pope also became famous for his philanthropy.
Michelangelo's fame reached Rome. At this time, the position of chief architect of the Vatican was held by the Florentine Giuliano da Sangallo, a friend of Michelangelo, who actively recruited his fellow countrymen to serve the pope. Michelangelo also received an invitation on behalf of the pope to come to Rome. The Pope decided to ensure his immortality with the help of a brilliant sculptor - he ordered Michelangelo to build a tomb. One could only dream of such an order: regardless of the capabilities of the depleted treasury, the pope provided Michelangelo with unlimited funds and materials and promised not to constrain his creative imagination.
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| Michelangelo Buonarroti. Tomb of Pope Julius II |
Michelangelo set to work energetically; he went to the quarries of Carrara, where c two assistants spent more than eight months selecting marble for the tomb. The amount of extracted marble, from which Michelangelo planned to sculpt 40 sculptures, amazed all of Rome: it took (!) 70 carts to transport it. But in Rome, Michelangelo received unpleasant news - during the sculptor’s absence, Pope Julius lost interest in this project and stopped funding the work. The offended Michelangelo immediately left Rome for Florence, without even saying goodbye to Pope Julius. The Pope sent him in pursuit demanding that he return. But (unheard of impudence in those days!), Michelangelo refused. Papa Julius II wanted to return Michelangelo to Rome at any cost, threatened, insisted. And after long negotiations in Bologna, their reconciliation took place.
As a sign of reconciliation, Michelangelo accepted an order to make a statue of the pope for the church of San Petronio. A statue of the pope was placed on the facade of the church in Bologna, which the pope annexed to his domains. But when Bologna regained its independence, the statue suffered a sad fate: it was melted down, and “the bronze was sold to Duke Alfonso of Ferrara, who poured a cannon out of it and named it Julia.” (Vasari)
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| Michelangelo Buonarroti."Descent from the Cross" |
The collapse of plans related to the tomb of Pope Julius II , plunged Michelangelo into deep depression. “In this tomb I buried my youth,” he wrote sadly in 1542. In 1513, dad died, and a long-term lawsuit began between the artist and a relative of the deceased. The contract for the tomb was concluded 6 times over 37 years, until finally the monument was installed in the church of San Pietro in Vincoli. In 1545, Michelangelo finally finished work on the tomb, but it was only a pale shadow of the original plan.
Read more about Michelangelo's works in our following materials.
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The sculptural composition of the Madonna and Child Christ, later called the “Madonna of Bruges,” became the only statue of Michelangelo that left Italy during his lifetime.
Initially this marble statue, created Italian genius at the very beginning of the 16th century, shortly after the completion of the Vatican Pietà, it was intended for a niche above the main altar in the Siena chapel of Cardinal Francesco Piccolomini, which explains some of the disproportion of the sculpture and the downward views of the Virgin and Child. However, during the process of work, disagreements arose between the sculptor and the customer - Michelangelo fundamentally wanted to sculpt the baby Jesus naked, while the cardinal considered this unacceptable. As a result, thanks to the mediation of Michelangelo's friend, banker Giovani Balducci, the owners of the statue became influential merchants from Bruges - Jan and Alexander Muscrone (in Italian pronunciation Moscheroni). In 1506, sculptural composition left Italy to be presented by merchants as a gift to the Bruges Church of Our Lady.
The small statue, whose height is only 128 centimeters, was placed in a black marble niche in the Chapel of the Blessed Sacrament, and in 1768 the composition was supplemented by two side sculptures (by Peter Peters), allegorically representing Faith and Hope. Over the course of several centuries, the “Madonna of Bruges” left the capital of West Flanders twice: after French Revolution, when all of Europe was in a fever, and in 1944, when the Germans retreating from the city were able to take out the statue under mattresses in a Red Cross truck. However, at the end of World War II, “Madonna” returned to its place. After a fanatic attacked the Vatican Pietà in 1972 (the maniac damaged the sculpture with a hammer), the Bruges authorities decided to protect their statue with bulletproof glass.
“Madonna of Bruges” deviates from generally accepted standards in many respects church canons of that time: pensive, as if immersed in her thoughts, the Mother of God does not hug her son to her, her gaze is directed to the side. The classical beauty of her young face is marked by subtle poetry, lyricism and deep sorrow, as if the mother had already revealed the sufferings of the cross destined for her son. American writer Irving Stone in his famous novel“Torment and Joy,” dedicated to the life and work of Michelangelo, describes the statue as follows: “That is why she resisted, did not want to let go of this beautiful, strong and agile boy, who grabbed her protecting hand with his little hand. And that’s why she covered her son with the edge of her cloak. The boy, sensing his mother’s mood, also had sadness hidden in his eyes. He was full of strength and courage, soon he would jump off his mother’s lap and leave this safe refuge, but now, at this moment, he grabbed his mother’s hand with one hand and pressed the other to her thigh. Perhaps he is thinking now about her, about his mother, saddened by the inevitable separation: her son, so trustingly clinging to his knees, will soon wander alone in the world.”
It seems that Mary’s eyelids are about to tremble, her chest, covered with the flowing folds of her clothes, will sigh, the baby Jesus will take his first independent step, in whose entire appearance one can already feel the hidden power... “Madonna of Bruges” is one of the most believable, inspired, “living” works of the great Michelangelo.
Whose works undoubtedly left a mark on history and influenced the development and formation of Western art. In the West it is considered the greatest sculptor, and although he spoke unflatteringly about painting, his frescoes in the Sistine Chapel, “ Last Judgment"and other works helped to find him a place among greatest artists. In addition, Michelangelo was one of the best architects of his time. This list of works includes both sculptures and architectural projects, as well as paintings.
10 Iconic Works by Michelangelo
10. Madonna Doni.
Type: Tondo.
Year of writing: 1507.
Madonna Doni
Angelo Doni, in the early 1500s, commissioned a master to depict the “Family of Saints” in order to later give it to his wife. The master used a round frame (tondo) for the painting.
The Doni Madonna includes the Virgin Mary, St. Joseph, the Christ Child and John the Baptist. Behind are five naked male figures.
9. Bacchus.
Type: Marble statue.
Year of creation: 1497.
This statue was completed by the sculptor at the age of 22. The famous work depicts the Roman god of wine, Bacchus, holding a right hand a glass of wine, and in the left is a tiger skin. Behind him sits a faun who is eating a bunch of grapes. "Bacchus" is one of two surviving sculptures early period Michelangelo's work in Rome.
8. Madonna of Bruges.
Type: Marble statue.
Year of creation: 1504.
Madonna of Bruges
"Madonna of Bruges" depicts Mary with the child Jesus. In this sculpture, Michelangelo does not adhere to the traditions of depicting this composition. The virgin’s face is distant, she does not look at Christ, as if she knows his future. At this time, the baby goes out into the world without maternal support.
7. Laurentian Library.
Type: Architecture.
Year of creation: 1559.
Laurentian Library
The Laurentian Library was designed by Michelangelo in 1524 for the Church of San Lorenzo in Florence (Italy). The entire structure, including the interior of the premises, was developed by the master in the innovative, at that time, style of mannerism.
This work is one of Michelangelo's most important architectural achievements. It is characterized by innovation and revolutionary ways of using space.
6. Moses.
Type: Marble statue.
Year of creation: 1515.
In 1505, Pope Julius II commissions Michelangelo to work on his tomb. The statue is located in Rome (Church of San Pietro in Vincoli). There is a legend that when the work was completed, Michelangelo hit the right knee of the sculpture with a hammer, as it began to speak, he was so realistic.
Type: Marble statue.
Year of creation: 1499.
The Pieta depicts the Virgin Mary mourning over the body of Jesus after the crucifixion, who lies on her lap. The statue is not based on real ones biblical stories, but still gained popularity in Northern Europe in the Middle Ages.
Buonarroti was only 24 years old at the time of completion of the work, which is now considered one of the world's greatest masterpieces of sculpture.
4. Last Judgment.
Type: fresco painting.
Year of creation: 1541.
Last Judgment
In Western art, “The Last Judgment” is one of the most significant works. Painted on the altar wall of the chapel, it demonstrates the second coming of Christ to earth. Jesus is shown in the center and surrounded by prominent saints who have risen from the dead.
Type: Architecture.
Year of manufacture: 1626.
Located in the Vatican, St. Peter's Basilica is the most... famous work Renaissance architecture. Many people worked on its creation famous masters(including Antonio da Sangallo). Although Michelangelo did not create it from scratch, the cathedral has survived to this day in the form in which it was Buonarroti who conceived it.
2. The creation of Adam.
Type: fresco painting.
Year of creation: 1512.
The cornerstone of Renaissance painting, the Creation of Adam, is located on the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel, giving rise to a number of followers and large number parodies.
1. David.
Type: Marble statue.
Year of creation: 1504.
Probably the most famous work Michelangelo's masterpiece sculpture of the biblical character David, who is ready to fight Goliath. The theme of David and Goliath was quite popular in the art of that time. Caravaggio, for example, has three works dedicated to this subject.
The colossal statue, 5.17 meters high, demonstrates Michelangelo's exceptional technical skills as well as the power of symbolic imagination.
10 iconic works Michelangelo updated: October 2, 2017 by: Gleb
, who modestly called himself “a sculptor from Florence,” was an artist, an architect, a poet, and a thinker. Each of his works is a synthesis of all his talents, ideal in form and philosophical in content.Tondo Doni from the Uffizi Gallery is the very masterpiece of Michelangelo, where painting becomes almost a sculpture filled with the deepest meaning.
Tondo Doni (or Madonna Doni) is the only non-monumental painting Michelangelo, which is considered completed, and whose authorship is beyond doubt.
A tondo is a piece of painting or sculpture in a round format, about a meter in diameter. Paintings and reliefs in the shape of a circle were extremely common in Florence during the early Renaissance. Throughout the 15th century, the most noticeable and bright artists worked with tondo, traditionally depicting religious subjects on them. Rich Florentines ordered tondos both for their palazzos and as expensive gifts for weddings and holidays.
In 1504, Michelangelo Buonarroti lives and works in Florence. Hishas just been installed in Piazza della Signoria, in the heart of the young republic. The news of the giant statue of a perfectly beautiful naked man spread throughout Europe. And there was no star brighter than Michelangelo!
A young sculptor, originally from Florence, who glorified his city... he became a real celebrity and the most sought-after master. Soon rumors of his genius will reach Pope Julius II himself, who will invite him to Rome with great respect. But for now Michelangelo is inundated with orders from wealthy Florentines: everyone wanted to get his work.
Agnolo Doni could not stay away either. A merchant, a wealthy textile merchant, a philanthropist, a collector of ancient and “modern” art, he was one of the most enlightened, famous and respected people in the city.
In 1504, a magnificent wedding takes place in Florence: Agnolo Doni marries Maddalena Strozzi, a representative of a wealthy family of Florentine bankers.
It is quite possible that it was in honor of this celebration that Doni turned to Michelangelo and ordered from him an image of the Virgin Mary in tondo format, the creation of which is connected with a fascinating story that has come down to us in the “Biographies...” of Giorgio Vasari.
When Michelangelo finished the tondo, he sent him with a messenger to Agnolo's house with a message to receive 70 ducats for it. Doni, a philanthropist and connoisseur of art, immediately realized that Michelangelo's work was so good that it was worth much more. But, being a prudent merchant, he decided that 40 ducats would be enough for the artist, which he handed to the messenger. Agnolo was fully confident that the artist would not dare to argue and bargain with such a powerful and respected person. But Michelangelo, known for his difficult character, became truly furious and sent back 40 ducats, ordering the messenger to return either with the painting or with double the price. Agnolo, already ready for 70, as in the saying about the stingy, was forced to send Michelangelo 140 ducats.
A year later, Agnolo Doni will turn to and will order a double portrait from him with his young wife. And you must agree, Raphael perfectly conveyed the character of Agnolo Doni, this smart but calculating Florentine.
What amazed Agnolo Doni so much, who was ready even for double the price?
Michelangelo places an intimate family scene in the center of the composition: the Virgin Mary hands over her son, the baby Jesus Christ, to Joseph.
A description by Giorgio Vasari has been preserved: “Here Michelangelo expresses in the turn of the head of the mother of Christ and in her eyes, fixed on the highest beauty of her son, his wonderful satisfaction and excitement<…>But since this was not enough for Michelangelo to show in yet to a greater extent the greatness of his art, he painted many naked bodies against the background of this work - leaning, standing upright and sitting, and he finished this whole thing so carefully and so cleanly that of all his paintings on the tree, and there are few of them, it is rightly considered the most complete and the most beautiful.”
The Holy Family is separated by a small wall, in the background there are naked young men resembling antique statues, so beloved by Michelangelo. And the figurine of the baby John the Baptist is placed in such a way that it seems to connect these scenes.
There are several ways to read this work.
According to one, Tondo Doni is a contrast between the old, pagan world and the new time of Christianity and the coming of the Savior. Perhaps this group of naked people, gathered in a semicircle in the manner of antiquity, are pagans awaiting baptism, the sacrament of which is traditionally associated with the figure of John the Baptist.
And according to another version, naked men symbolize homosexual relationships, which were often attributed to Michelangelo, and which were condemned by the Christian church.
The technique with which Michelangelo completed the work amazed and continues to amaze everyone without exception. An unusually solid composition and rich color scheme make the tondo expressive, bright and unforgettable. It is impossible to believe that its creator did not consider himself an artist at all. On the contrary, Michelangelo did not like painting, considering the chisel and hammer to be his tools.
At the same time, he amazingly managed to work with these very instruments, like a brush (just remember the Pieta). And to paint pictures as if he were carving them out of marble: after all, the naked hands of the Virgin Mary seem completely alive!
The lively plasticity of figures is another unconditional advantage of Tondo Doni. Michelangelo was an artist and sculptor who was extremely attracted to the human body. He was not at all interested in portraying ethereal images. Of course, nude male body movement is the main thing in Michelangelo's art. But even when depicting clothed characters, Mary and Joseph, Michelangelo achieves maximum authenticity of movements and poses. After all, he, who is passionate about anatomy, knows all the secrets and positions of the human body like no other artist.
The Virgin Mary handing over the baby Jesus Christ to Joseph is depicted in an unusual movement. This turn seems to twist the entire composition in a spiral, making it integral and expressive.
Pose of the Virgin, found by Michelangelo, certainly during preparatory work. After all, for each of his projects, Michelangelo made dozens of drawings from life. It was this situation that unusually inspired Raphael Santi, a young and impetuous artist who arrived in Florence at that time, wanting to study with Michelangelo and Leonardo.
Tondo Doni will be an endless source of inspiration for Rafael. He uses this twisting movement in the painting “Entombment”: a girl in this position supports the Virgin Mary, who has fainted from grief.
And years later, in Rome, where Raphael would achieve extraordinary fame, become a leading artist, chief architect of St. Peter's Basilica and keeper of antiquities, he would not forget Tondo Doni. In 1512, he will create the altarpiece “Madonna di Foligno”, and his Jesus Christ will be so similar to the baby from the Tondo Doni. This is how, inspired and entering into dialogue, Raphael expressed his deep admiration for the genius of Michelangelo Buonarroti, “a simple sculptor from Florence.”
Madonna and Child, or "Madonna of Bruges" (1504)
Returning to Florence, after "David", Michelangelo created the so-called "Madonna of Bruges" a small (1.27 m high) sculptural group of the Madonna and Child, finishing it in 1504. Subsequently, the statue ended up in the Notre Dame Church in the Dutch city of Bruges.
By type, this young, gentle, thoughtful Madonna resembles Madonna "Lamentations of Christ" from St. Peter's Cathedral. However, on this basin, the sculptor sculpted a more traditional composition, depicting Jesus in the form of a Child. In this modest work, which reveals a line of images in Michelangelo’s work, marked by features of a peculiar lyricism, Madonna herself is especially attractive, in which classical beauty and inner strength personalities are combined with soft poetry and nobility. You can feel the hand of the master who sculpted the Roman "Pieta" .
The Madonna and Child from Bruges is one of Michelangelo's most beautiful and spiritual Madonnas. A sad woman, chosen and doomed, she foresees her son's suffering on the cross. Her gaze is directed into the distance, an expression of inescapable sadness is frozen on her face. The Baby, cheerful and inquisitive, with a large curly head, evokes completely different feelings. With her childish spontaneity and serenity, she seems to emphasize the immensity of her mother’s future grief.
“That’s why she resisted, did not want to let go of this beautiful, strong and agile boy, who grabbed her protecting hand with his little hand. And that’s why she covered her son with the edge of her cloak. The boy, sensing his mother’s mood, also had sadness hidden in his eyes. He was full of strength and courage, soon he would jump off his mother’s lap and leave this safe refuge, but now, at this moment, he grabbed his mother’s hand with one hand and pressed the other to her thigh. Perhaps he is thinking now about her, about his mother, saddened by the inevitable separation: her son, so trustingly clinging to his knees, will soon wander the world alone.” Stone Irving.
The Virgin Mary turned out to be alive and believable, tender and pure. One more moment, and the eyelids will tremble, the hand will pick up the child, the chest will inhale. She is alive, she feels. The master no longer idealized Mary’s face, as in early works. Having created the Roman “Pieta” and “David”, he is looking for feeling, believability: modest clothes with flowing folds outline the strong body of a young mother, a face with heavy eyelids from unshed tears, a long nose, thick hair in a simple hairstyle, covered with a heavy hood, as this piece recalls the Pietà. The baby's body, although childish, gives a feeling of hidden power, but is childishly cute - plump cheeks and chin, curly head. At his mother’s knees, holding her hand, he feels protected and ready to explore the world. The position of the bodies of the sculptural group is very natural - what could be more plausible than the Mother and Child from Bruges?