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Wednesday, May 9, 2012

The Virgin Mary and the NBA

Disclaimer: At the end of this post I’m going to reveal something about a beloved sculpture that might alter the way you look at it. If you’re disappointed when magicians reveal their secrets, consider reading no further.

CC


Michelangelo’s Pietà, carved in 1499 when the sculptor was only twenty-five, is one of the most famous and beloved sculptures in the world. Many of us have seen it on display in Saint Peters in Rome. Millions more have seen plaster and plastic versions of it, photos printed on Christmas and Easter cards, puzzles, and even gold-plated charms on bracelets. Like the Mona Lisa, our familiarity with this sculpture now prevents us from seeing it for the miracle it truly is. Recently, a version of Edvard Munch’s The Scream sold for just under 120 million dollars. The Scream, whether we like it or not, is one of the most famous works of art in the world. But was it worth the price?


Michelangelo’s work, even his failures, are far greater than anything Munch created, but modern society is far more willing to shell out big bucks for works by tormented souls like Van Gogh, Jackson Pollock, and Edvard Munch. Yet few artists were tormented by their work more than Michelangelo, who once wrote a sonnet claiming that he might have been happy if art hadn’t ruined him.


A bit of background. During the Renaissance, successful artists were treated the way NBA players are treated today—as celebrities. In Florence, buzz was building over Michelangelo’s work. When he arrived in Rome a dying cardinal commissioned him to carve a marble sculpture for Saint Peter’s Basilica, a pietà—a representation of the dead Jesus held in the arms of his grieving Mother. The only instructions given were that the sculpture should be finer than anything being produced at that time in Rome and that it should make viewers weep. Michelangelo worked quickly, but the cardinal died before the statue was completed. Although he had no authorization to place his sculpture inside the Basilica, Michelangelo hired a family of brawny stonecutters to move the statue in the dead of night. The stonecutters refused money when they saw the sculpture, claiming they would receive payment in Heaven.


The next day Michelangelo wandered into Saint Peters to see how his sculpture was being received. A group of art connoisseurs surrounded his Pietà; they were speculating on who could have carved such an extraordinary statue. The names of various sculptors were bandied about; Michelangelo’s name was not among them. That night, Michelangelo returned with candles, hammer and chisel. On the sash between the Virgin’s breasts he carved these words: Michelangelo Buonarroti, a Florentine, made this. Never again would he need to sign his work.


Michelangelo reached the remarkable age of eighty-nine, slam-dunking the world with a body of masterpieces that has never been equaled. But this youthful work has tugged at heartstrings for centuries, and rightfully so because something amazing is happening.


First a fact: men are generally larger and heavier than women, so a composition showing the body of a thirty-three year old man lying across the lap of a normal sized woman is going to look unsightly, clumsy, awkward. Medieval artists relished this affront to beauty. They emphasized the ungainliness of Mary struggling to keep the body sprawled across her lap from sliding to the floor like a lead petticoat. But Michelangelo’s Mary is not shown as a normal mother of a crucified adult male; Her face is that of a teenager, as if Her purity and innocence have kept Her from aging, as if the realization of God’s will has shielded Her from emotion. And yet—here’s where the magic comes in—this young girl effortlessly supports the dead man on Her lap, as if He weighed less than a deflated basketball. In anticipation of the Resurrection and Ascension, Jesus weighs nothing at all.


How does Michelangelo achieve this miracle? He was reported to have made hundreds of drawing to achieve this effect but burned them all when the sculpture was completed, as was his custom. The faces of Mary and Jesus are depicted close together. Both are of normal size. But to support Jesus’ body Michelangelo has distorted human anatomy. Beneath the marble drapes, Mary has legs that would be the envy of any professional basketball player, legs that could catapult their owner twenty feet into the air. In fact, the bottom half of Mary’s body is so disproportionately large that if She were to stand She’d be between seven and eight feet tall.


Such was Michelangelo’s mastery at the age of twenty-five that we simply don’t notice the effortless manner in which Mary supports her Son. Take a close look at the slack muscles, the veins on Jesus’ limp arms and wrists; mastery of anatomy such as this, registered in stone, has rarely been equaled. Through this miracle in marble we bear witness to the recreation of a biblical event, a whisper in stone that answers prophesy by shouting our humanity and our faith: Thy will be done.


No work of art is worth 120 million dollars, but Michelangelo's Pietà comes close.


34 comments:

  1. That is really interesting. Personally I don't like all that impressionist, cubist, surrealist, etc. stuff. I like my pictures to actually look like something. I should go to Rome and Greece and all that at some point to see all those relics.

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  2. I was enthralled reading this. I remember seeing this statue and it moved me even more than David did. I love knowing the info you shared with us today~

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  3. Fascinating! Looking closely as you suggest, it's all there. I had no idea. :)

    S

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  4. Well done. Interesting.

    120 million for a picture...makes you want to SCREAM!

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  5. thank you for sharing your knowledge....very interesting.

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  6. This statue is an inspiration to me as a mother.
    I enjoyed reading this interesting post...thanks!

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  7. I never realized how this beautiful sculpture was designed- thanks for the education! When I was 15 years old I actually got to go to Rome and see this magnificent work in person. Photos do not do it justice-it's amazing.

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  8. I love these art history lessons of yours. Keep them coming!!

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  9. Knowing all this makes this excellent piece of artwork even more beautiful. Thanks for the history lesson.

    Have a terrific day. :)

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  10. The thing that I remember most about this is that someone once took a hammer to it. (1972, but I remember it well, I was so shocked by it.)
    What a beautiful piece of art that I think is priceless.

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  11. Oh yes. Michaelangelo...I'm so glad that he was born so that I could see the beauty that he wrought. Some people are given such tremendous talent that it defies the imagination. Incredible analysis, sir.

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  12. Wow! What a great art history lesson. I shall never look at this marvellous work with the same eyes again. Thank you so much.

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  13. I love our art history lessons with you :)

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  14. There was a copy of this in the church I went to as a child. I remember when the discrepancies in scale were pointed out to me, and how weird it looked when I tried to notice, and how normal when I didn't. I came to assume that the Pieta was meant to be a Madonna & Child recreated. Both icons together, which is brilliant.

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  15. Very interesting - you are a great teacher. I had never noticed or known about this before.

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  16. I've seen the Pieta in Rome and had not been moved as much as this one did. The background information you give here made me realize just how truly a master of the art Michelangelo was.

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  17. Marvelous post. Thanks for the superb art history and insight.

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  18. Excellent description of an awesome piece of art. You have included much about Michelangelo and the picture. Thanks.

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  19. Every time i saw another of his works, i thought it was beyond description even more than the ones before. You've raised him even higher in my mind.

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  20. Thanks for how beautifully you have written about one of the world's most amazing pieces of art.

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  21. Thank you for the information. I have never seen the Pieta in person and would love to.

    Love,
    Janie Lola

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  22. Wow! What an awesome post! I was hoping Michelangelo did not destroy his drawings and they would be discovered on an episode of Storage Wars. Seriously, great post and one I'll go back to read a second time.

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  23. thank you for this - really interesting post

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  24. I stumbled on here via another blog and I am so glad I did. This is by far my most favorite sculpture ever. I have always loved it and have a little replica of it. I never knew the history behind it though. The way that you write is very interesting too. It made me feel like I was there when he walked up and saw everyone discussing who made it and then went back later to put in his name. Thanks for this post!

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  25. What a great piece of learning. Nicely done CC. *smile*

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  26. Very interesting Stephen. You clearly know your stuff.

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  27. I saw a Pieta in a small chapel (I believe) in Florence. I can't remember now if Michelangelo did more than one or if this was a copy by another sculptor.

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  28. In one of my long ago art classes, I was taught perspective. I think that you have explained that much better than that long ago dusty professor ever could have dreamed...

    Cat

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  29. Thanks for sharing...the guy was a genius!

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  30. I guess that's what art is all about - making the extraordinary look normal, or even commonplace! Fascinating!!

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  31. Thanks for visiting. I am your newest follower. I really enjoyed your post on The Pieta. Michelangelo was just amazing.

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  32. My daughter and her artist husband just got back from Europe on Friday and were visiting today, talking about their travels...they saw this sculpture... I told them about this post...they said oh yea, we learned that in art class...that is crazy to me...that they knew this...

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  33. Dang... I wanted to read your new post and it won't show up for me. What in the world is up with that anyway??

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