Night and day, rough and polish—this chapel embodies opposition and traps the viewer in a moment of transition.
Michelangelo
Cracks, picks, polish—and teeth. Sounds like dentistry, but the pearly whites here are blocks of Carrara marble.
Quarrying and carving marble
Location, location, location. Meant for the cathedral, David presided over a public square—and now stands inside.
The many meanings of Michelangelo’s David
Michelangelo transforms a male model into a female figure. Discover the artist’s working process.
Michelangelo, Studies for the Libyan Sibyl (recto); ...
Watch a sculptor demonstrate the use of traditional tools as he carves a block of marble.
Carving marble with traditional tools
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Michelangelo, Ceiling of the Sistine Chapel
Where’s Goliath? David scans for his enemy. This colossal sculpture is itself a giant of High Renaissance art.
Michelangelo, David
Michelangelo turns book learning on its head. Defying classical grammar, he speaks his own architectural language.
Michelangelo, Laurentian Library
As demons harvest new souls and angels wake the dead, Mary crouches, powerless beside Christ.
Michelangelo, Last Judgment, Sistine Chapel
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Saint Peter’s Basilica
Bound to rock, these figures struggle to escape their marble prisons. One closes his eyes; the other looks to God.
Michelangelo, Slaves
Can stone be that soft? Contrast defines this sculpture. Mary is sweet but strong, and Christ, real yet ideal.
Michelangelo, Pietà
The greatest minds of the High Renaissance worked on this vast church. Construction took more than a century.
Saint Peter’s Basilica
God created the world in seven days, but it took Michelangelo four years to depict it on this remarkable ceiling.
Ceiling of the Sistine Chapel
The Hebrew prophet at the center of this tomb exudes energy and power, from his intense gaze to his twisted pose.
Michelangelo, Moses
He mastered fresco as easily as marble—and spoke the languages of architecture and poetry with equal fluency.