Lives of the Most Eminent Painters, Sculptors and Architects, Vol. 09 (of 10): Michelagnolo to the Flemings — John Shaqi
Lives of the Most Eminent Painters, Sculptors and Architects, Vol. 09 (of 10): Michelagnolo to the FlemingsVasari, Giorgio
History
Lives of the Most Eminent Painters, Sculptors and Architects, Vol. 09 (of 10): Michelagnolo to the Flemings
Vasari, Giorgio
Art, Italian; Artists -- Italy -- Biography
Besides this, in order to display the perfection of art and also the
greatness of God, he painted in a scene God dividing Light from
Darkness, wherein may be seen His Majesty as He rests self-sustained
with the arms outstretched, and reveals both love and power. In the
second scene he depicted with most beautiful judgment and genius God
creating the Sun and Moon, in which He is supported by many little
Angels, in an attitude sublime and terrible by reason of the
foreshortenings in the arms and legs. In the same scene Michelagnolo
depicted Him after the Blessing of the Earth and the Creation of the
Animals, when He is seen on that vaulting as a figure flying in
foreshortening; and wherever you go throughout the chapel, it turns
constantly and faces in every direction. So, also, in the next scene,
where He is dividing the Water from the Earth; and both these are
very beautiful figures and refinements of genius such as could be
produced only by the divine hands of Michelagnolo. He then went on,
beyond that scene, to the Creation of Adam, wherein he figured God as
borne by a group of nude Angels of tender age, which appear to be
supporting not one figure only, but the whole weight of the world;
this effect being produced by the venerable majesty of His form and by
the manner of the movement with which He embraces some of the little
Angels with one arm, as if to support Himself, and with the other
extends the right hand towards Adam, a figure of such a kind in its
beauty, in the attitude, and in the outlines, that it appears as if
newly fashioned by the first and supreme Creator rather than by the
brush and design of a mortal man. Beyond this, in another scene, he
made God taking our mother Eve from Adam's side, in which may be seen
those two nude figures, one as it were dead from his being the thrall
of sleep, and the other become alive and filled with animation by the
blessing of God. Very clearly do we see from the brush of this most
gifted craftsman the difference that there is between sleep and
wakefulness, and how firm and stable, speaking humanly, the Divine
Majesty may appear.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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