1.
Michelangelo
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Michelangelo di Lodovico Buonarroti Simoni was an Italian sculptor, painter, architect, and poet of the High Renaissance who exerted an unparalleled influence on the development of Western art. Considered to be the greatest living artist during his lifetime, he has since described as one of the greatest artists of all time. A number of Michelangelos works of painting, sculpture, and architecture rank among the most famous in existence and he sculpted two of his best-known works, the Pietà and David, before the age of thirty. As an architect, Michelangelo pioneered the Mannerist style at the Laurentian Library, at the age of 74, he succeeded Antonio da Sangallo the Younger as the architect of St. Peters Basilica. Michelangelo transformed the plan so that the end was finished to his design, as was the dome, with some modification. Michelangelo was unique as the first Western artist whose biography was published while he was alive, in his lifetime he was often called Il Divino. One of the qualities most admired by his contemporaries was his terribilità, the attempts by subsequent artists to imitate Michelangelos impassioned and highly personal style resulted in Mannerism, the next major movement in Western art after the High Renaissance. Michelangelo was born on 6 March 1475 in Caprese near Arezzo, at the time of Michelangelos birth, his father was the Judicial administrator of the small town of Caprese and local administrator of Chiusi. Michelangelos mother was Francesca di Neri del Miniato di Siena, the Buonarrotis claimed to descend from the Countess Mathilde of Canossa, this claim remains unproven, but Michelangelo himself believed it. Several months after Michelangelos birth, the returned to Florence. There Michelangelo gained his love for marble, as Giorgio Vasari quotes him, If there is good in me. Along with the milk of my nurse I received the knack of handling chisel and hammer, as a young boy, Michelangelo was sent to Florence to study grammar under the Humanist Francesco da Urbino. The young artist, however, showed no interest in his schooling, preferring to copy paintings from churches, the city of Florence was at that time the greatest centre of the arts and learning in Italy. Art was sponsored by the Signoria, by the merchant guilds and by patrons such as the Medici. The Renaissance, a renewal of Classical scholarship and the arts, had its first flowering in Florence, the sculptor Lorenzo Ghiberti had laboured for fifty years to create the bronze doors of the Baptistry, which Michelangelo was to describe as The Gates of Paradise. The exterior niches of the Church of Orsanmichele contained a gallery of works by the most acclaimed sculptors of Florence – Donatello, Ghiberti, Andrea del Verrocchio, and Nanni di Banco. The interiors of the churches were covered with frescos, begun by Giotto. During Michelangelos childhood, a team of painters had been called from Florence to the Vatican, among them was Domenico Ghirlandaio, a master in fresco painting, perspective, figure drawing, and portraiture who had the largest workshop in Florence at that period
2.
Apostolic Palace
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The Apostolic Palace is the official residence of the Pope, which is located in Vatican City. It is also known as the Papal Palace, Palace of the Vatican and Vatican Palace, the Vatican itself refers to the building as the Palace of Sixtus V in honor of Pope Sixtus V. The modern tourist can see these last and other parts of the palace, the Scala Regia can be seen into from one end but not entered. In the fifth century, Pope Symmachus built a palace close to the Old St. Peters Basilica which served an alternative residence to the Lateran Palace. The construction of a fortified palace was sponsored by Pope Eugene III. The Vatican Palace had fallen into disrepair from lack of upkeep, in 1447, Pope Nicholas V razed the ancient fortified palace of Eugene III to erect a new building, the current Apostolic Palace. In the 15th century, the Palace was placed under the authority of a prefect and this position of Apostolic Prefect lasted from the 15th century till the 1800s, when the Papal States fell into economic difficulties. In 1884, when this post was reviewed in light of saving money, the major additions and decorations of the palace are the work of the following popes for 150 years. In the 20th century, Pope Pius XI built an art gallery. Construction of the Papal Palace at the Vatican in Vatican City, covering 162, 000m squared, it contains the Papal Apartments, offices of the Roman Catholic Church and Holy See, chapels, Vatican Library, museums and art galleries. The Apostolic Palace is run by the Prefecture of the Pontifical Household, the palace is more accurately a series of self-contained buildings within the well-recognized outer structure which is arranged around the Courtyard of Sixtus V. It is located northeast of St Peters Basilica and adjacent to the Bastion of Nicholas V, the Apostolic Palace houses both residential and support offices of various functions as well as administrative offices not focused on the life and functions of the Pope himself. Perhaps the best known of the Palace chapels is the Sistine Chapel named in honor of Sixtus IV and it is famous for its decoration that was frescoed throughout by Renaissance artists including Michelangelo, Sandro Botticelli, Pietro Perugino, Pinturicchio, Domenico Ghirlandaio, and others. One of the functions of the chapel is as a venue for the election of each successive Pope in a conclave of the College of Cardinals. In this closed-door election, the cardinals choose a successor to the first pope, St. Peter and this suite of rooms is famous for its frescos by a large team of artists working under Raphael. They were originally intended as a suite of apartments for Pope Julius II and he commissioned Raphael, then a relatively young artist from Urbino, and his studio in 1508 or 1509 to redecorate the existing interiors of the rooms entirely. It was possibly Julius intent to outshine the apartments of his predecessor Pope Alexander VI and they are on the third floor, overlooking the south side of the Belvedere Courtyard. After the death of Julius in 1513, with two rooms frescoed, Pope Leo X continued the program, following Raphaels death in 1520, his assistants Gianfrancesco Penni, Giulio Romano and Raffaellino del Colle finished the project with the frescoes in the Sala di Costantino
3.
Vatican City
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Vatican City, officially Vatican City State or the State of Vatican City, is a walled enclave within the city of Rome. With an area of approximately 44 hectares, and a population of 842, however, formally it is not sovereign, with sovereignty being held by the Holy See, the only entity of public international law that has diplomatic relations with almost every country in the world. It is an ecclesiastical or sacerdotal-monarchical state ruled by the Bishop of Rome – the Pope, the highest state functionaries are all Catholic clergy of various national origins. Vatican City is distinct from the Holy See, which dates back to early Christianity and is the episcopal see of 1.2 billion Latin. According to the terms of the treaty, the Holy See has full ownership, exclusive dominion, within Vatican City are religious and cultural sites such as St. Peters Basilica, the Sistine Chapel and the Vatican Museums. They feature some of the worlds most famous paintings and sculptures, the unique economy of Vatican City is supported financially by the sale of postage stamps and tourist mementos, fees for admission to museums, and the sale of publications. The name Vatican City was first used in the Lateran Treaty, signed on 11 February 1929, the name is taken from Vatican Hill, the geographic location of the state. Vatican is derived from the name of an Etruscan settlement, Vatica or Vaticum meaning garden, located in the area the Romans called vaticanus ager. The official Italian name of the city is Città del Vaticano or, more formally, Stato della Città del Vaticano, although the Holy See and the Catholic Church use Ecclesiastical Latin in official documents, the Vatican City officially uses Italian. The Latin name is Status Civitatis Vaticanæ, this is used in documents by not just the Holy See. The name Vatican was already in use in the time of the Roman Republic for an area on the west bank of the Tiber across from the city of Rome. Under the Roman Empire, many villas were constructed there, after Agrippina the Elder drained the area and laid out her gardens in the early 1st century AD. In AD40, her son, Emperor Caligula built in her gardens a circus for charioteers that was completed by Nero, the Circus Gaii et Neronis, usually called, simply. Even before the arrival of Christianity, it is supposed that this originally uninhabited part of Rome had long considered sacred. A shrine dedicated to the Phrygian goddess Cybele and her consort Attis remained active long after the Constantinian Basilica of St. Peter was built nearby, the particularly low quality of Vatican water, even after the reclamation of the area, was commented on by the poet Martial. The Vatican Obelisk was originally taken by Caligula from Heliopolis in Egypt to decorate the spina of his circus and is thus its last visible remnant and this area became the site of martyrdom of many Christians after the Great Fire of Rome in AD64. Ancient tradition holds that it was in this circus that Saint Peter was crucified upside-down, opposite the circus was a cemetery separated by the Via Cornelia. Peters in the first half of the 4th century, the Constantinian basilica was built in 326 over what was believed to be the tomb of Saint Peter, buried in that cemetery
4.
Pope Paul III
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Pope Paul III, born Alessandro Farnese, was Pope from 13 October 1534 to his death in 1549. He came to the throne in an era following the sack of Rome in 1527. He convened the Council of Trent in 1545 and he was a significant patron of the arts and employed nepotism to advance the power and fortunes of his family. It is to Pope Paul III that Nicolaus Copernicus dedicated De revolutionibus orbium coelestium, alessandro’s humanist education was at the University of Pisa and the court of Lorenzo de Medici. Initially trained as a notary, he joined the Roman Curia in 1491. Farnese’s sister, Giulia was reputedly a mistress of Alexander VI, for this reason, he was sometimes mockingly referred to as the Borgia brother-in-law, just as Giulia was mocked as the Bride of Christ. More disparagingly he was referred to as Cardinal Fregnese, as Bishop of Parma, he came under the influence of his vicar general, Bartolomeo Guidiccioni. This led to the future pope breaking off the relationship with his mistress, under Pope Clement VII he became Cardinal Bishop of Ostia and dean of the College of Cardinals, and on the death of Clement VII in 1534, was elected as Pope Paul III. As a young cleric, Alessandro lived a dissolute life, taking for himself a mistress. By Silvia Ruffini, he fathered Pier Luigi Farnese, whom he created Duke of Parma, others included Ranuccio Farnese, the fourth pope during the period of the Protestant Reformation, Paul III became the first to take active reform measures in response to Protestantism. Paul III first deferred for a year and then discarded the whole project, in 1536, Paul III invited nine eminent prelates, distinguished by learning and piety alike, to act in committee and to report on the reformation and rebuilding of the Church. This report was printed not only at Rome, but at Strasburg, yet the Pope was in earnest when he took up the problem of reform. Yet it is clear that the Concilium bore no fruit in the situation. On the other hand, serious political complications resulted, in order to vest his grandson Ottavio Farnese with the dukedom of Camerino, Paul forcibly wrested the same from the duke of Urbino. He also incurred virtual war with his own subjects and vassals by the imposition of burdensome taxes, perugia, renouncing its obedience, was besieged by Pauls son, Pier Luigi, and forfeited its freedom entirely on its surrender. The burghers of Colonna were duly vanquished, and Ascanio was banished, after this the time seemed ripe for annihilating heresy. In 1540, the Church officially recognized the young society forming about Ignatius of Loyola, the second visible stage in the process becomes marked by the institution, or reorganization, in 1542, of the Congregation of the Holy Office of the Inquisition. On another side, the Emperor was insisting that Rome should forward his designs toward a recovery of the German Protestants
5.
Battle of the Centaurs (Michelangelo)
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Battle of the Centaurs is a relief by Italian Renaissance artist Michelangelo, created around 1492. It was the last work Michelangelo created while under the patronage of Lorenzo de Medici, inspired by a classical relief created by Bertoldo di Giovanni, the unfinished marble sculpture depicts the mythic battle between the Lapiths and the Centaurs. A popular subject of art in ancient Greece, the story was suggested to Michelangelo by the classical scholar, Battle of the Centaurs was a remarkable sculpture in several ways, presaging Michelangelos future sculptural direction. Michelangelo had departed from the current practices of working on a discrete plane to work multidimensionally. Whether intentionally left unfinished or not, the work is significant in the tradition of non finito sculpting technique for that reason, Michelangelo regarded it as the best of his early works, and a visual reminder of why he should have focused his efforts on sculpture. Michelangelo, at 17, was working under the patronage of Lorenzo de Medici when he crafted the Battle of the Centaurs, the work reflected a then current fashion for reproducing ancient themes. Specifically, Michelangelo was inspired by a relief that had produced for de Medici by Bertoldo di Giovanni. Michelangelo chose to work in marble rather than the more expensive bronze to keep down costs, Bertoldo took other liberties with his source material and seems to have himself been inspired by the Antonio del Pollaiolo engraving Battle of the Nudes. The young sculptor never finished the work and he also notes that Michelangelo expressed no dissatisfaction with the work. Whether or not the sculpture was left incomplete, Michelangelo regarded this sculpture as the best of his early works. According to Condivi, the poet Poliziano suggested the subject to Michelangelo. The battle depicted takes place between the Lapiths and the Centaurs at the wedding feast of Pirithous, Pirithous, king of the Lapith, had long clashed with the neighboring Centaurs. To mark his good intentions Pirithous invited the Centaurs to his wedding to Hippodamia, whose name and this led not only to an immediate clash, but to a year-long war, before the defeated Centaurs were expelled from Thessaly to the northwest. The myth was a subject for Greek sculpture and painting. Battles between Lapiths and Centaurs were depicted in the friezes on the Parthenon and on Zeus temple at Olympia. Scigliano suggests that Michelangelos Battle of the Centaurs also reflects the themes of Greeks over barbarians and civilization over savagery, the triumph of stone over flesh. The relief consists of a mass of figures, writhing in combat. Architectural historian Howard Hibbard says that Michelangelo has obscured the centaurs, one of the few identifiable centaurs is visible in the bottom center, his leg extending between the legs of the twisting figure above him
6.
Arca di San Domenico
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The Arca di San Domenico is a monument containing the remains of Saint Dominic. It is located in Dominic’s Chapel in the Basilica of San Domenico in Bologna, the elaboration of this artistic masterpiece was performed in separate stages by the best sculptors of their time and took almost 500 years to finish. Saint Dominic died in the convent of the church of San Nicolò delle Vigne on 6 August 1221 and he was buried behind the altar. The church of San Nicolò was expanded into the Basilica of San Domenico between 1228 and 1240. The remains of the saint were moved in 1233 from its place behind the altar into a marble sarcophagus. Since most of the pilgrims, who came in numbers to see the grave, were not able to see this shrine, hidden by so many people standing in front of it. In 1264, the Dominicans then commissioned a new tomb for their founder to Nicola Pisano and he was certainly responsible for the design of the new sarcophagus, but in 1265 he was already at work on another assignment, the pulpit for the Siena Cathedral. The front side was done in his workshop, partially by Nicola Pisano himself, the rectangular sarcophagus was originally borne on caryatid figures. The sarcophagus was relocated in the middle of the church in 1411, between 1469 and 1473 a crowning was added on the flat top of the sarcophagus by Niccolò dellArca and several other masters in their art. Among them was the young Michelangelo, who added the statuettes of San Petronio, in 1532, a step was added between the sarcophagus and the altar slab by Alfonso Lombardi. The Saint Dominic’s chapel was built by the Bolognese architect Floriano Ambrosini from 1597, the Dominicans wanted a chapel for their founder to match the splendour of the other existing chapels. The fresco on the cupola of the apse St. Dominic’s Glory, finally the whole tomb was put on a marble altar in the 18th century. In a little chapel, on the back of the tomb, is the reliquary with the Head of St. Dominic. The sarcophagus is the part and also the oldest part of the shrine. It contains the remains of Saint Dominic in a cypress coffin, Nicola Pisano, already famous for his pulpit in the Pisa Baptistery, was asked in 1264 to construct this sarcophagus. He was certainly responsible for the design, but left the brunt of the work to his workshop, the front side was done in his workshop, partially by Nicola Pisano himself but mostly by his assistant Lapo di Ricevuto. and another famous sculptor Arnolfo di Cambio. The Dominican brother fra Guglielmo da Pisa made a small contribution, according to Gnudi an anonymous Fifth Master was also involved. A collaboration of several sculptors on such a commission was normal practice in medieval sculpture
7.
David (Michelangelo)
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David is a masterpiece of Renaissance sculpture created between 1501 and 1504 by Michelangelo. It is a 5. 17-metre marble statue of a male nude. The statue represents the Biblical hero David, a subject in the art of Florence. The eyes of David, with a glare, were turned towards Rome. The statue was moved to the Galleria dellAccademia, Florence, in 1873, the history of the statue begins before Michelangelos work on it from 1501 to 1504. In 1410 Donatello made the first of the statues, a figure of Joshua in terracotta, a figure of Hercules, also in terracotta, was commissioned from the Florentine sculptor Agostino di Duccio in 1463 and was made perhaps under Donatellos direction. Eager to continue their project, in 1464, the Operai contracted Agostino to create a sculpture of David, a block of marble was provided from a quarry in Carrara, a town in the Apuan Alps in northern Tuscany. Agostino only got as far as beginning to shape the legs, feet and his association with the project ceased, for reasons unknown, with the death of Donatello in 1466, and ten years later Antonio Rossellino was commissioned to take up where Agostino had left off. Rossellinos contract was terminated soon thereafter, and the block of marble remained neglected for 25 years, all the while exposed to the elements in the yard of the cathedral workshop. This was of concern to the Opera authorities, as such a large piece of marble not only was costly but represented a large amount of labour. In 1500, an inventory of the cathedral workshops described the piece as a figure of marble called David, badly blocked out. A year later, documents showed that the Operai were determined to find an artist who could take this piece of marble. They ordered the block of stone, which they called The Giant, raised on its feet so that an experienced in this kind of work might examine it. Though Leonardo da Vinci and others were consulted, it was Michelangelo, only 26 years old, on 16 August 1501, Michelangelo was given the official contract to undertake this challenging new task. He began carving the statue early in the morning on 13 September and he would work on the massive statue for more than two years. They convened a committee of 30 Florentine citizens that comprised many artists, including Leonardo da Vinci and Sandro Botticelli, while nine different locations for the statue were discussed, the majority of members seem to have been closely split between two sites. Another opinion, supported by Botticelli, was that the sculpture should be situated on or near the cathedral. In June 1504, David was installed next to the entrance to the Palazzo Vecchio, replacing Donatellos bronze sculpture of Judith and Holofernes and it took four days to move the statue the half mile from Michelangelos workshop into the Piazza della Signoria
8.
Taddei Tondo
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The Taddei Tondo or The Virgin and Child with the Infant St John is a marble relief tondo by Italian Renaissance artist Michelangelo Buonarroti. Part of the permanent collection of the Royal Academy of Arts in London, a perfect demonstration of his carving technique, the work delivers a powerful emotional and narrative punch. The tondo dates to Michelangelos time in Florence before his move to Rome in 1505, which works were considered outstanding and marvellous. A chisel blow on the reverse seemingly from this phase resulted in a hairline crack in the face of the Virgin that may only have become apparent as carving progressed. The missing segment to the right may be a result of an excess of his celebrated direct attack. In 1568 the tondo was still in the Palazzo Taddei, at an unknown date the tondo was taken to Rome, where it was acquired from Jean-Baptiste Wicar by Sir George Beaumont in 1822. It has been housed and displayed in various locations there ever since, except for an exhibition at the Victoria, the discovery of the hairline crack running through the upper half of the marble contributed to the decision in 1989 to provide a permanent home for the tondo. The tondo was left unwaxed and no other coating applied, as the work is not finished and was not originally polished, the tondo as a format for painting and relief sculpture was a quintessential product of the Florentine Renaissance. Compositionally, the eye of the viewer is drawn diagonally along Christs body, back up that of his mother, with her gaze across to John, and from his face back to Christ. John, patron saint of Florence, with his attribute of a bowl, crosses his arms. Executed with only a point and claw chisel, often hard and with great energy. The Christ child in full relief is highly finished, the relief of the Virgin finished to a lesser degree, St. John more so again. These marked variations in texture help establish the status of the three figures while creating a sense of compositional depth all the greater for not being more conventionally finished. Many of Michelangelos works are unfinished, according to nineteenth-century French sculptor and critic Eugène Guillaume, Michelangelos non finito was one of the masters expressive devices in his quest for infinite suggestiveness. Raphael returned to the body of the Christ child stretching across his mothers lap in the Bridgewater Madonna. It is indeed a great addition to our stock of art, cockerell noted in his diary how the subject seems growing from the marble & emerging into life. It assumes by degrees its shape, features from an unformed mass, with its differing degrees of finish the tondo is an outstanding technical study piece, plaster casts may be found at the Victoria and Albert Museum and Fitzwilliam Museum. Pitti Tondo Doni Tondo Taddei Tondo
9.
Tomb of Pope Julius II
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The Tomb of Pope Julius II is a sculptural and architectural ensemble by Michelangelo and his assistants, originally commissioned in 1505 but not completed until 1545 on a much reduced scale. Originally intended for St. Peters Basilica, the tomb was placed in the church of San Pietro in Vincoli on the Esquiline in Rome after the popes death. This church was patronised by the della Rovere family from which Julius came, as originally conceived, the tomb would have been a colossal structure that would have given Michelangelo the room he needed for his superhuman, tragic beings. The original project called for a freestanding, three-level structure with some 40 statues, the most famous sculpture associated with the tomb is the figure of Moses, which was completed during one of the sporadic resumptions of the work in 1513. Michelangelo felt that this was his most lifelike creation, legend has it that upon its completion he struck the right knee commanding, now speak. As he felt that life was the only thing left inside the marble, there is a scar on the knee thought to be the mark of Michelangelos hammer. 1505 – Julius commissions a tomb from Michelangelo, who spends 6 months choosing marble at Carrara,1506 – Michelanglo returns to Rome due to a lack of funds available for the project, and is dismissed by an angry and bitter Julius. Michelangelo moves to Florence until Julius threatens to wage war on the state unless he returns,1512 – With his decoration of the Sistine Chapel ceiling complete, Michelangelo resumed work on the tomb. Between 1512 and 1513 he completed three sculptures for the project, the Dying and Rebellious Slaves and Moses,1513 – Julius died in February 1513. A new contract was drawn up on 6 May which specified a wall tomb, on 9 July Michelangelo contracted a stonemason, Antonio del Ponte a Sieve, to execute the architectural elements of the tombs lower register, which can be seen in the final design. The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City has a drawing of the tomb from this period, though no longer for a free-standing monument, the project in fact became more ambitious both in terms of size and the complexity of its iconography. 1516 – A new contract is agreed between Michelangelo and Julius’s heirs who demand the completion of the project, 1520s – Michelangelo carves The Genius of Victory and four unfinished Slaves. 1532 – A second new contract is signed by Michelangelo which involves a wall-tomb,1542 – The wall-tomb is begun by Michelangelo after final details are negotiated with Julius′s grandson. The statues of the Dying Slave and the Rebellious Slave were finished but not included in the monument in its last and they are now in the Louvre. Another figure intended for Pope Julius tomb is The Genius of Victory, other sculptures for the tomb were the Young Slave, the Atlas Slave, the Bearded Slave and the Awakening Slave. The sculptures of Rachel and Leah, allegories of the contemplative and the life, were executed by Raffaello da Montelupo. The other sculptures are by less experienced pupils, media related to Michelangelos grave for Julius II at Wikimedia Commons
10.
Medici Chapel
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The Sagrestia Nuova, was designed by Michelangelo. The larger Cappella dei Principi, though proposed in the 16th century, was not begun until the early 17th century, the Sagrestia Nuova was intended by Cardinal Giulio de Medici and his cousin Pope Leo X as a mausoleum or mortuary chapel for members of the Medici family. The Sagrestia Nuova was entered by an entrance in a corner of San Lorenzos right transept. By order of Cosimo I, Giorgio Vasari and Bartolomeo Ammannati finished the work by 1555, there were intended to be four Medici tombs, but those of Lorenzo the Magnificent and his brother Giuliano were never begun. The result is that the two magnificent existing tombs are those of comparatively insignificant Medici, Lorenzo di Piero, Duke of Urbino and Giuliano di Lorenzo and their architectural components are similar, their sculptures offer contrast. A concealed corridor with drawings on the walls by Michelangelo was discovered under the New Sacristy in 1976, the octagonal Cappella dei Principi surmounted by a tall dome,59 m. high, is the distinguishing feature of San Lorenzo when seen from a distance. It is on the axis as the nave and chancel to which it provides the equivalent of an apsidal chapel. Its entrance is from the exterior, in Piazza Madonna degli Aldobrandini, the opulent Cappella dei Principi, an idea formulated by Cosimo I, was put into effect by Ferdinand I de Medici. A true expression of art, it was the result of collaboration among designers. For the execution of its astonishing revetment of marbles inlaid with colored marbles and semi-precious stone, the Grand Ducal hardstone workshop, the Opificio delle Pietre Dure was established. The art of commessi, as it was called in Florence, the result was disapproved of by 18th and 19th century visitors, but has come to be appreciated for an example of the taste of its time. Six grand sarcophagi are empty, the Medici remains are interred in the crypt below, in sixteen compartments of the dado are coats-of-arms of Tuscan cities under Medici control. In the niches that were intended to hold sculptures of Medici. The lantern at the top of the Medici Chapel is made out of marble and has an “…. unusual polyhedron mounted on the peak of the conical roof, the orb that is on top of the lantern has seventy-two facets and is about two feet in diameter. But because it is on a mausoleum, the Medici family is promoting their own personal power with the orb and cross, laurel wreath and lion heads. The lantern that holds up the orb helps to accentuate the height and size of the chapel, the lantern is a bit less than seven meters tall and, “…is equal to the height of the dome it surmounts, ”. The lantern metaphorically expresses the themes of death and resurrection, the lantern is where the soul could escape and go from “…death to the afterlife. ”. ISBN 5-98856-012-1 Peter Barenboim, Sergey Shiyan, Michelangelo, Mysteries of the Medici Chapel, SLOVO, ISBN 5-85050-825-2 Peter Barenboim, Sergey Shiyan, Michelangelo in the Medici Chapel, Genius in details
11.
Doni Tondo
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The Doni Tondo or Doni Madonna, sometimes called The Holy Family, is the only finished panel painting by the mature Michelangelo to survive. The painting is in the form of a tondo, or round frame, the Doni Tondo features the Christian Holy family along with John the Baptist in the foreground and contains five ambiguous nude male figures in the background. The inclusion of these figures has been interpreted in a variety of ways. The Virgin Mary is the most prominent figure in the composition, Mary sits directly on the ground without a cushion between herself and the ground, to better communicate the theme of her relationship to the earth. The grass directly below the figure is green, which contrasts to the grassless ground surrounding her, although the green is now darker. Saint Joseph has a position in the image compared to Mary, perhaps as the head of the family. Mary is located between his legs, as if he is protecting her, there is some debate as to whether Mary is receiving the Christ child from Joseph or vice versa. Saint John the Baptist, the saint of Florence, is very commonly included in Florentine works depicting the Madonna. He is in the middle-ground of the painting, between the Holy Family and the background, the elements around the family include plants and perhaps water. The painting is still in its frame, one that Michelangelo might have influenced or helped design. The frame is ornately carved and rather unusual for the five heads it contains which protrude three-dimensionally into space, similar to the nudes of the background, the meanings of these heads has been subject to speculation. The frame also contains carvings of crescent moons, stars, vegetation and these symbols are, perhaps, references to the Doni and Strozzi families, taken from each one’s coat of arms. As depicted on the frame, “the moons are bound together with ribbons that interlock with the lions, there is a horizontal band separating the foreground and background, whose function is to separate the Holy Family from the background figures and St. John the Baptist. The background figures are five nudes, whose meaning and function are subject to much speculation, the Holy Family is much larger in size than the nudes in the background, and there appears to be water in between the land where the Holy Family and the nudes are situated. The Holy Family all gaze at Christ, but none of the nudes look directly at him, the far background contains a landscape. The juxtaposition of bright colors foreshadows the same use of color in Michelangelo’s later Sistine ceiling frescoes, the folds of the drapery are sharply modeled, and the skin of the figures is so smooth, it looks as if the medium is marble. The surface treatment of the massive figures resembles a more than a painting. The nude figures in the background have softer modeling and look to be precursors to the ignudi, Michelangelo’s technique includes shading from the most intense colors first to the lighter shades on top, using the darker colors as shadows, a technique called cangiante
12.
Palazzo Vecchio
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The Palazzo Vecchio is the town hall of Florence, Italy. It overlooks the Piazza della Signoria with its copy of Michelangelos David statue as well as the gallery of statues in the adjacent Loggia dei Lanzi, the building acquired its current name when the Medici dukes residence was moved across the Arno to the Palazzo Pitti. The cubical building is made of rusticated stonework, with two rows of two-lighted Gothic windows, each with a trefoil arch. In the 15th century, Michelozzo Michelozzi added decorative bas-reliefs of the cross, the building is crowned with projecting crenellated battlement, supported by small arches and corbels. Under the arches are a series of nine painted coats of arms of the Florentine republic. Some of these arches can be used as embrasures for dropping heated liquids or rocks on invaders, the solid, massive building is enhanced by the simple tower with its clock. This tower contains two cells, that, at different times, imprisoned Cosimo de Medici and Girolamo Savonarola. The tower is named after its designer Torre dArnolfo, Duke Cosimo I de Medici moved his official seat from the Medici palazzo in via Larga to the Palazzo della Signoria in May 1540, signalling the security of Medici power in Florence. Cosimo commissioned Giorgio Vasari to build a walkway, the Vasari corridor, from the Palazzo Vecchio, through the Uffizi. Cosimo I also moved the seat of government to the Uffizi, the palace gained new importance as the seat of united Italys provisional government from 1865–71, at a moment when Florence had become the temporary capital of the Kingdom of Italy. The tower currently has three bells, the oldest was cast in the 13th century, above the front entrance door, there is a notable ornamental marble frontispiece, dating from 1528. In the middle, flanked by two gilded lions, is the Monogram of Christ, surrounded by a glory, above the text, Rex Regum et Dominus Dominantium (translation, King of Kings and Lord of Lords. This text dates from 1851 and does not replace an earlier text by Savonarola as mentioned in guidebooks, between 1529 and 1851 they were concealed behind a large shield with the grand-ducal coat of arms. Michelangelos David also stood at the entrance from its completion in 1504 to 1873, a replica erected in 1910 now stands in its place, flanked by Baccio Bandinellis Hercules and Cacus. The first courtyard was designed in 1453 by Michelozzo, in the lunettes, high around the courtyard, are crests of the church and city guilds. In the center, the fountain is by Battista del Tadda. The Putto with Dolphin on top of the basin is a copy of the original by Andrea del Verrocchio and this small statue was originally placed in the garden of the Villa Medici at Careggi. The water, flowing through the nose of the dolphin, is brought here by pipes from the Boboli Gardens, in the niche, in front of the fountain, stands Samson and Philistine by Pierino da Vinci
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