Michelangelo Research Paper

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Pages: 3

[1] Michelangelo was born on March 6th, 1475 in the small town of Caprese. A few months after his birth, his father, Lodovico Buonarroti, a magistrate of Caprese, decided to move the family to Florence.[1] Michelangelo’s unofficial education as a sculptor started when he was six, when he was sent to live in the stonecutter village of Settignano.[2] There he spent four years learning how to use chiseling tools and to carve stone, which would later help his education and career as a sculptor.[2] In 1485, at the age of ten, Michelangelo returned to Florence and was sent to study Latin and penmanship at a grammar school. Instead of studying, he spent most of his time copying paintings from churches and talking to artists. Michelangelo’s official education as a sculptor and painter started after he turned thirteen and became an apprentice to …show more content…
The sculptures Michelangelo is most known for are the Pieta and David.[1] Michelangelo’s fame as a sculptor began when, in 1497, Cardinal Jean de Bilhères-Lagraulas commissioned him to make a pieta, a statue of Mary holding Jesus body. [2] After completing the Pieta people were amazed by how well he was able to sculpt the physique of the human body. [1] Michelangelo’s fame spread throughout Italy and when he returned to Florence, in 1499, was asked to complete a giant statue of David, started by a previous artist forty years earlier. The David is 17 feet tall and weighs 12,478 pounds and was completed in 1504. The David was meant to stand on roof of the Florence cathedral, but was too tall and heavy to get on the roof, and instead was placed in front of the Palazzo della Signoria.[4] Having spent many hours dissecting bodies of men and women, Michelangelo was able to precisely replicate the human anatomy in his sculptures, making them look realistic and