Michelangelo Buonarroti

The Profile

Michelangelo Buonarroti (1475–1564) was an Italian Renaissance sculptor, painter, architect, and poet. He created David and the Vatican Pietà, painted the Sistine Chapel ceiling and The Last Judgment, and shaped the Medici Chapel; his late Pietà Rondanini embodies his non finito introspection.

Born in Caprese in 1475 and died in Rome in 1564, Michelangelo excelled in sculpture (David, c.1501–1504; Vatican Pietà, 1498–1499), painting (Sistine Chapel ceiling, 1508–1512; The Last Judgment, 1536–1541), and architecture (Medici Chapel/New Sacristy, 1520–1534; later chief architect of St. Peter’s Basilica). Pietà Rondanini is a late work marked by non finito.

Four fervent reviews celebrate Michelangelo’s mastery in marble and fresco. David’s anatomy and tension steal the show, while the Sistine’s whirl of souls stuns. The Medici Chapel’s Mannerist jolts and the Pietà Rondanini’s non finito reveal a restless late style. Overall tone: awed, poetic, and proudly Renaissance.