Michelangelo: Divine Draftsman and Designer

Michelangelo was one of the greatest artists who ever lived. Active during the height of the Italian Renaissance, he was the first star artist.

Michelangelo in NYC

The Metropolitan Museum of Art owns three of the artist’s works. Young Archer, a marble sculpture from around 1490, is on view at the Met Fifth Avenue in Gallery 503.

“Michelangelo: Divine Draftsman and Designer” is an exhibition of the Italian artist’s work at the Met Fifth Avenue in the Upper East Side, November 13, 2017 through February 12, 2018.

The exhibition includes about 150 drawings, three marble sculptures, his earliest painting, and a wood architectural model for a chapel vault. It is organized by Carmen C. Bambach, Curator in The Met’s Department of Drawings and Prints.

Michelangelo’s Eye was Divine

“Pietà” (1498–1499) courtesy of Stanislav TraykovMichelangelo’s most famous works include the Pietà sculpture, his statue of David, the ceiling of the Sistene Chapel, and the design of the Laurentian Library in Florence.

“David” courtesy of Jörg Bittner UnnaThe Creation of Adam from the Sistene Chapel is probably the world’s most famous artwork.

“Creation of Adam” from the Sistine ChapelMichelangelo di Lodovico Buonarroti Simoni was born in Caprese, Italy on March 6, 1475. He was raised in Florence where Lorenzo de’ Medici became his patron. The artist died in 1584.

Michelangelo’s work had such a charisma about it that his contemporaries were astounded. The work had a great influence on artists who came after. It led to the development of Mannerism, a movement away from classical concepts of naturalistic balance towards elegant exaggeration.