Dusk & Dawn

"Dusk and Dawn"
Photo by:Tania Zatikian

"Dusk and Dawn"
Photo by: Tania Zatikian

As we count down the days of the end of our trip, we’re all trying to put extra effort into seeing as much artwork as we can. Today I went to the Medici Chapel to see the tombs that the Pope commissioned Michelangelo to do. The tombs were for the last 2 generations of the Medici family. The Pope commissioned Michelangelo to create a new sacristy for the tombs for the Medici family. The tombs were for Giuliano and Lorenzo. The tomb for Giuliano is a statue of a woman and a man, representing “Night & Day” night representing the female and day representing the male. And for Lorenzo the female represents dawn and the male represents dusk. By looking at the statue of the female figure you can tell that Michelangelo wasn’t a master when it came to sculpting the female figure. My personal favorite was Lorenzo’s tomb, “Dusk and Dawn.” What I liked most was the fact that the piece wasn’t completed. I don’t think it would have had the same effect if it were completed. The reason Michelangelo wasn’t able to finish the piece was because he was forced out of Florence along with the Medici family in 1527 after the sack of Rome. Which in my opinion made this work of art more valuable and not only does it add more story, it’s also beautiful because of the fact that it’s not finished. It allows the viewers imagination take over.

"Dusk and Dawn"

The Gates to Paradise

"The Gates to Paradise"
photo by: Tania Zatikian

In my previous blogs I talked about “The Gates to Paradise” and how eager I was to go and see them in person. Well now finally I can say that I was able to make that happen and it was more than I could have ever imagined. What I saw at Forest Lawn could not even compare or even come close to the original. Even though we talked about it in class, it takes seeing it yourself to really notice the detail and perfection of each piece. When you go to see the doors, they have a video playing of how they restored it. That alone was interesting to watch, especially because it took 26 years to finish the restoration. Vasari talks about the doors in great detail and describes what each panel represents and what event in the first testament takes place. It is truly and amazing piece of work, and what shocks me the most is the fact that Ghiberti was only 20 years old when he started working on the doors, and this took him about 20 or so years to complete. It’s interesting how throughout the years his talent and skill grew through time, which helped him, perfect this piece. Vasari talks about how Donatello and Brunelleschi, both amazing artists themselves, “declared him their equal and recognized him to be a better master at casting than they were themselves…” I couldn’t agree with them more, Ghiberti skill is something that is very hard to reach.

The Transfiguration

"The Transfiguration"
Photo by: Tania Zatikian

Its funny, every single time we go to a new museum or discuss a piece during class, I say to myself, “No, this is my favorite piece!” constantly being surrounded by all this beauty it’s hard to single one out. So, for this week, my favorite painting is the Transfiguration. Main reason this painting caught my eye was because this is my style of work. It’s really easy for me to relate to Michelangelo and Raphael, because their work is what I one day want to reach that level of excellence. It was known to be one of Raphael’s last paintings. The painting represents the connection between God and his people. At first glance I thought that this painting represented Jesus coming back after being crucified, the resurrection. But the image is divided into two parts; the upper part shows the Transfiguration with Jesus in the middle and Elijah and Moses by his side. The bottom half Raphael painted a scene with the Apostles trying to help this child who is possessed, because they are unsuccessful they need help from above. So in this Raphael combined the two separate scenes together. Beautiful work of art, I absolutely love his painting technique. I can only hope one day that my own work will be as flawless as this painting. 

Michelangelo

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michelangelo

The more I read about Michelangelo the more impressed I get. I believe from all the artists that we have studied he would have to be my favorite one. I can relate to his art and his style because it’s quite similar to mine. Of course my work doesn’t come close to Michelangelo’s masterpieces. It’s clear that Vasari was quite fond of him as well. In my earlier blogs I talk about the Pieta, and this past weekend I had the privilege to see it in person. It was more than what I could have imagined. Vasari makes him sound like an art god, like he can do no wrong. He says while talking about the Pieta that “ no sculptor, not even the most rare artist, could ever reach this level of design and grace, nor could he, even with the hard work, ever finish, polish, and cut the marble as skillfully as Michelangelo did here, for in this statue all of the worth and power of sculpture is revealed.” I couldn’t agree more, he finished this piece at age 24, which shocked me beyond words could express, because I’m 24. He was a genius who was blessed with such amazing talent and capacity to understand what no other artist at the time was able to understand. 

Last Judgment (10)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Michelangelo,_Giudizio_Universale_02.jpg
The Last Judgment

The Last Judgment is a piece that is made to both inspire and instill fear in the viewer. Even though I was fascinated by this piece, I was a little nervous to have to pay close attention to the details and talk about them. Michelangelo’s image of hell looks so realistic that it really makes you shiver with the thought of actually going to such a place. The painting is both heaven and hell, but surprisingly enough the demons in the picture stood out to me more than any other image. The amount of detail put into the souls who are put in internal damnation is shocking. Even though the Bible inspires this, you can see Michelangelo’s imagination take on a life of its own. Looking at this painting you no longer have to read the book of Revelations, because it’s right there in front of you, from the angel holding the book of life, to the images of the cemetery where the souls connect with their bodies. Although the Council of Trent issued decrees due to some images that were not allowed for the church. Biagio da Cesena said “it was mostly disgraceful that in so sacred a place there should have been depicted all those nude figures, exposing them so shamefully," so what does Michelangelo do? He paints Cesena as the judge of the underworld with donkey ears. And although he’s nude he has a snake wrapped around him biting his penis. Which to me was hilarious. Even though Cesena complained to the Pope, the Pope said that because he was in hell he had no place to say anything anymore and the image remained. But after Michelangelo died the genitals of some of the figures was painted over and some of the women were clothed. Daniele da Volterra did this. Seeing this piece in person had me speechless, I couldn’t look away. I became so obsessed over it that I barely gave any attention to the Sistine Chapel. Another beautiful work of art done by the amazing Michelangelo.