Michaelangelo's Sistine Chapel Review

The maker of the critically acclaimed David tries his hand at a completely different medium.

Have you ever experienced the divine? The feeling that there is something larger that encompasses yourself and all you've ever known, something that transcends the bounds of human experience, incomprehensible and awe-inspiring yet comfortable as it shows you your rightful place in the cosmos? If you haven't, then developer Michelangelo's latest project does its very best to give you that experience, and for the most part, it succeeds.

Developer Michaelangelo (creator of the critical darlings David and Pieta) makes his first foray into painting and what a debut it is. He takes his hyper-realistic approach to the human anatomy into a completely different medium and at a much grander scale and manages to succeed in translating the meticulous detail and perfect form of his three-dimensional sculptures onto the two-dimensional canvas that is the ceiling of Sistine Chapel.

A Touch of the Divine

Michaelangelo's latest opus depicts scenes from the Old Testament with a scale and majesty never seen before. At the center of the work are scenes from Genesis, from the Creation of the World to the Great flood, and each scene is executed with the magnificence and attention to detail that the subject demands. I mean, have a look at this one showing the Creation of Adam:

And that's just one of the striking set pieces in the work. The Genesis section alone contains 9 such scenes and while the others do not have the same impact, they're no slouch either.

Scale and Detail

While the scale of the work is much larger than any of Michaelangelo's previous projects, it has managed to maintain the level of attention to detail found in his previous, more intimate works. The accuracy and precision of the depictions of figures in the ceiling scenes match that of David and Pieta.

The amount of time and effort to keep this level of detail throughout the entirety of the piece is truly impressive and definitely adds to its overall impact.

Again and Again... and Again

As great as the work is, it is not without its faults. Perhaps the most noticeable is the almost overbearing repetition. Michaelangelo's depictions of the human body are visually impressive, but even they can become tiresome after you've seen them for the 10th, 11th, or 30th time.

The repetition also appears on a higher, thematic level. While it really does nail its Biblical subject matter, the addition of other themes, like, say a peaceful rural landscape or a scene of faeries frolicing in a forest would break up the Old Testament monotony.

The Verdict

Michaelangelo's Sistine Chapel is a masterpiece that captures the grand and awe-inspiring nature of its Biblical themes. Though slightly marred by repetition both in theme and execution, it transcends these flaws and delivers an experience that is truly unique and definitively proves that Michaelangelo is a master not just of sculpture, but of painting as well. Definitely worth a look.