Michelangelo. The Complete Works. Paintings, Sculptures, Architecture
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- Create Date：2022-06-18 09:52:13
- Update Date：2025-09-07
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- Author：Frank Zöllner
- ISBN：3836586126
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Summary
Michelangelo as never seen before
Before reaching the tender age of thirty， Michelangelo Buonarroti （1475-1564） had already sculpted David and Pièta， two of the most famous sculptures in the entire history of art。 Like fellow Florentine Leonardo da Vinci， Michelangelo was a shining star of the Renaissance and a genius of consummate virtuosity。 His achievements as a sculptor， painter， draughtsman， and architect are unique--no artist before or after him has ever produced such a vast， multi-faceted， and wide-ranging oeuvre。 Only a handful of other painters and sculptors have attained a comparable social status and enjoyed a similar artistic freedom。 This is demonstrated not only by the frescoes of the Sistine Chapel but also by Michelangelo's monumental sculptures and his unconventional architectural designs， whose forms went far beyond the accepted vocabulary of his day。 Such was his talent that Michelangelo was considered a demigod by his contemporaries and was the subject of two biographies during his lifetime。 Adoration of this remarkable man's work has only increased on the intervening centuries。 This sumptuous tome also takes account， to a previously unseen extent， of Michelangelo's more personal traits and circumstances， such as his solitary nature， his thirst for money and commissions， his miserliness， his immense wealth， and his skill as a property investor。 In addition， the book tackles the controversial issue of the attribution of Michelangelo drawings， an area in which decisions continue to be steered by the interests of the art market and the major collections。 This is the definitive volume about Michelangelo for generations to come。
Reviews
Sebastian Palmer
，
Stunning！At the time of first posting this review we'd only had this book one day， so I hadn't had time to read much of the written content。 What little I’d read seemed fine （and the inclusion of Michelangelo's own writings - I've only read a couple of his poems， relating to sculpture and the ceiling - makes for very interesting reading）。 But the visual content is just， well， almost indescribably wonderful。Having just recently watched， albeit for the umpteenth time， K Clark on Michelangelo， in t Stunning！At the time of first posting this review we'd only had this book one day， so I hadn't had time to read much of the written content。 What little I’d read seemed fine （and the inclusion of Michelangelo's own writings - I've only read a couple of his poems， relating to sculpture and the ceiling - makes for very interesting reading）。 But the visual content is just， well， almost indescribably wonderful。Having just recently watched， albeit for the umpteenth time， K Clark on Michelangelo， in the superb Civilisation series （episode five: The Hero As Artist）， perusing this magnificent mammoth of a book reminds one that， via such a spectacularly large and beautifully printed publication， one is able to enjoy a view of the Sistine ceiling that even a visit to the chapel itself won't furnish。 Of course seeing it in the flesh， so to speak， will have other and different benefits that owning a book won't reproduce。 But obviously this review is all about the book。Divided into sections on sculpture， architecture， etc。， and with a large and very opulent section of 'presentation' images， there are superbly photographed and beautifully printed illustrations galore。 The Sistine ceiling is， unsurprisingly， the centrepiece， but many aspects of this amazing artists work are treated to lavish exposition （this is， after all， the complete works）。 So there are photos， sticking with the ceiling for now， of the whole thing， individual scenes， and then details within scenes， and some of these fold out， via double-page spreads into images equivalent to four pages in width， making the already enormous scale of this book even grander and more luxurious。Personally I think that， whilst not cheap if compared to more average art books （not in itself a cheap category， it has to be said）， this is， especially at Amazon's current heavily discounted price - at the time of writing/purchase this was approx £85， as opposed to RRP of £135 - something of a bargain， and certainly a worthwhile investment in aesthetic pleasure and edification。 I'm hoping the written content will address such issues as how many people （if any: I have no knowledge on this topic yet） helped Michelangelo complete his work， and also to what extent the frescoes have changed with restoration over the years， etc。 But that remains to be discovered。Having already enjoyed several hours of extreme （almost ecstatic） pleasure just looking through this， we are looking forward to many more。 。。。more
Joris Rycken
，
Prachtig boek， prachtig geïllustreerd， relevante tekst in veel te kleine lettertjes in een letterlijk veel te zwaar boek。。。
Aurelia
，
This Taschen Volume is a great work to get to better know the works of Michelangelo beyond what is already popular culture。 It contains his sculpture， paintings and architecture。 The graphic works， which means his drawings and studies that survived are compiled in another Taschen volume。 Nevertheless， a minority of them which the authors judged necessary to get their point when it comes to his painting and architecture are included here。The bulk of the book follows the career of Michelangelo chr This Taschen Volume is a great work to get to better know the works of Michelangelo beyond what is already popular culture。 It contains his sculpture， paintings and architecture。 The graphic works， which means his drawings and studies that survived are compiled in another Taschen volume。 Nevertheless， a minority of them which the authors judged necessary to get their point when it comes to his painting and architecture are included here。The bulk of the book follows the career of Michelangelo chronologically， focusing on his works and their artistic genesis， circumstances of their creation and peculiar historical background。 We also get to see what contemporaries thought of these works and how Michelangelo saw his Art。 A very intimate side of the artist is also presented in excerpts of his correspondence， where we really get to know his personality and views。 Alongside this we find an abundance of pictures in an attempt to give the reader the closest experience possible to seeing the works of Michelangelo in real life。 The pictures are of high quality and can occupy up to two pages sometimes， they are also well located vis a vis the text， so one can easily go back and forth between the two。In addition to this we find three catalogs， for Sculptures， paintings and architecture。 The catalogs also contain pictures but they are of smaller size。 their main goal is to give a brief overview of the context of the creation of the work， which sometimes can be repetitive of what was said in the main section of the book， but their real value comes in presenting and referencing what scholarship and research， both contemporary to Michelangelo and modern had to say about the works。 These range from controversial interpretations and comparisons with other masterpieces， to digging up models and sources of inspiration and so on。 This part in particular helps showcasing the complexity of the works of Michelangelo， and how the learned eye see much more than us common folk。Michelangelo， his Art and Time are all incredibly unique in the History of Civilization。 The man himself was divinely inspired to say the least。 It is true that in his letters we see a person very prone to complaining about everything， almost hypochondriac。 When it comes to money he was restless in amassing a fortune in order to boost the social status of his family。 Politically， he survived very well the turbulence of a violent struggle between the rising bourgeois to which he belonged by birth and the established hereditary aristocracy who protected him and which he served ever since his early works。 Despite all of this， what remains is an incredible energy to create and almost immeasurable ambition to surpass all。 In his twenties he already compared himself to the masters of antiquity and no one else。 In every one of his works he never abided by what was done traditionally and always risked the new and the shocking， having total faith in his own esthetic standards， and courage and strength to impose them on a generation of artists who were not without talent。 The sheer scale of his oeuvre demonstrate this enormous urge to create， an urge which led him to accept more than what he can humanly achieve， knowing that what he achieved is already beyond the abilities of most of humans。The Time of Michelangelo was equally divinely inspired: a generation of mad Popes to say the least。 It is really hard to imagine such a thing happening again。 The scale of the Art commissioned is really difficult to comprehend。 Not only they were building Saint Peters， already a colossal project， but they were building chapels and tombs and libraries and palaces。 In the context of the Counter Reformation no effort was spared into reaffirming the strength of the Catholic Church， Art being its chief means of propaganda with which it shows all the glory of God。 Although outside of the scope of this book， the historical forces which led to the artistic achievements of Michelangelo are interesting in themselves and deserve deeper study。On the whole， I was immensely satisfied with the treatment of the works contained in this volume。 One actually get a more profound image of what Michelangelo was trying to do。 Even the works really known to us， like those of the Sistine Chapel， out of which new details are brought up。 As for the architecture， one should keep in mind that Michelangelo worked usually on existing structures with a long history of interventions by different architects， so it was really hard to appreciate the extent of his own contribution。 Or maybe the difficulty is purely personal as to this day I still have not figured out what the Art of architecture is about。 。。。more
LadyMayfair
，
Am only here for David， for now。This commission had its roots in a decorative programme originally conceived in the 14th century， in which monumental figures of Prophets were to adorn the Florence cathedral's buttresses。 Little progress was made at first， but in the second half of the Quattrocento the project was revived: by 1464 the sculptor Agostino di Duccio （1418-1481） had produced a monumental terracotta figure described in documents as "a Giant or Hercules" （uno gigante overo Erchole）。 Ago Am only here for David， for now。This commission had its roots in a decorative programme originally conceived in the 14th century， in which monumental figures of Prophets were to adorn the Florence cathedral's buttresses。 Little progress was made at first， but in the second half of the Quattrocento the project was revived: by 1464 the sculptor Agostino di Duccio （1418-1481） had produced a monumental terracotta figure described in documents as "a Giant or Hercules" （uno gigante overo Erchole）。 Agostino di Duccio laboured in vain and the marble block was left "badly roughed out" （male abbozzatum）， as the documents put it， and unfinished in the Office of Works。In the summer of 1476， the sculptor Antonio Rossellino（1427-1479） tried his luck with the block abandoned by di Duccio。 But Rossellino， too， capitulated in front of the challenge and the enormous block spent another 25 years in the Opera del Duomo， until the commission was awarded to Michelangelo， who may thereby have been chosen over a rival sculptor， Andrea Sansovino （1460-1529）。 Michelangelo commenced work properly on 13 September 1501， having four days earlier chipped a "knot" off the "badly roughed out" block。 From this piece of information， mentioned in a document relating to the commission， it follows that the figure begun by Agostino di Duccio had already progressed to a certain stage: the upper body with a drapery knot - such as that found on the marble David by Donatello （1386-1466） - must already have been partially carved。With its monumentality， its nakedness， its clearly accentuated muscular frame and its Contrapposto， David clearly recalls antique representations of Hercules and the cardinal virtue of Fortitudo associated with this hero。 This double encoding of David and Hercules was joined by the belief， commonly held in Florence since the preaching of Girolamo Savonarola， that the name David meant "strong of hand and fair of face" （manu fortis et pulcher aspectu）。This also lends expression to another idea put forward by Savonarola， namely that David was Ambidextrous （ambidestri）， equally strong in both his right and left hand。 Thus Michelangelo's David holds the sling draped loosely over his shoulder with his left hand， while his right hand grasps a stone。 A right-handed person， however， would hold the sling in his right hand and the projectile in his left。On the sheet bearing the sketch for the right arm of David， there is a seemingly cryptic inscription - the first instance of an artist of the modern era offering a direct interpretation of his own work:"Davicte cholla Frombae io collarchoMichelagniolo[ 。。。 ]""David with the slingand I with the bowMichelangelo[ 。。 。 ]" By "bow" （Collarcho） Michelangelo meant the sculptor's Borer， a pointed tool that is inserted into a loop in the string of a bow and made to turn by horizontal bowing movements。 Michelangelo implies through this inscription that （where his predecessors have failed） he has vanquished the hard， resistant material of the giant marble block with the aid of his borer just as David defeated the physically far stronger Goliath with his sling。 He does not focus upon the cruder side of carving， associated with the chisel， but the more subtle work with the fine borer。 。。。more
Dorin
，
“Behind art lies an ability， and it is an ability to work。 Those who admire art， admire a labour， a very skilled and accomplished labour。 And it is necessary to know something about this labour， in order to admire it and enjoy its result， the work of art。” （Bertolt Brecht）Picked this up to learn more about David and ended up being absolutely blown by the pages on the Sistine Chapel。 All the reproductions and details， along with the descriptions， history and interpretations， provide a near comple “Behind art lies an ability， and it is an ability to work。 Those who admire art， admire a labour， a very skilled and accomplished labour。 And it is necessary to know something about this labour， in order to admire it and enjoy its result， the work of art。” （Bertolt Brecht）Picked this up to learn more about David and ended up being absolutely blown by the pages on the Sistine Chapel。 All the reproductions and details， along with the descriptions， history and interpretations， provide a near complete understanding of what Michelangelo has created。 It is absolutely fascinating。 Too bad you can’t learn all this while visiting his art。 The swarm of tourists is always in your way。 。。。more
Krati Sharma
，
"。。。in the secrets of his art that has been admired ever since， that， As much he lets the bodies of his figures twist and turn in violent movement， their outline always remains firm，womple and restful。The reason for this is that， from the very beginning， Michelangelo always tried to conceive his figures as lying hidden in a block of marble on which he was working: the task he set himself as a sculptor was merely to remove the stone which covered them。"-ERNST GOMBRICHAbsolutely beautiful。 "。。。in the secrets of his art that has been admired ever since， that， As much he lets the bodies of his figures twist and turn in violent movement， their outline always remains firm，womple and restful。The reason for this is that， from the very beginning， Michelangelo always tried to conceive his figures as lying hidden in a block of marble on which he was working: the task he set himself as a sculptor was merely to remove the stone which covered them。"-ERNST GOMBRICHAbsolutely beautiful。 。。。more
Paul
，
Kunst vertroost， Michelangelo's kunst bij uitstek！ Deze uitgave vormt qua format en tekst een geheel met Zollners uitgave van Michelangelo's grafisch werk; er is wel wat hinderlijke overlap omdat zijn bekendste tekeningen ook al in dit deel zijn opgenomen。 Jammer， Zollner had die ruimte beter kunnen gebruiken voor wat grotere weergaven van sculpturen （zoals het kruis in san Spirito of de twee tondo's） maar dat zijn details。 Qua informatie voegde de tekst enerzijds weinig toe aan wat ik al wist u Kunst vertroost， Michelangelo's kunst bij uitstek！ Deze uitgave vormt qua format en tekst een geheel met Zollners uitgave van Michelangelo's grafisch werk; er is wel wat hinderlijke overlap omdat zijn bekendste tekeningen ook al in dit deel zijn opgenomen。 Jammer， Zollner had die ruimte beter kunnen gebruiken voor wat grotere weergaven van sculpturen （zoals het kruis in san Spirito of de twee tondo's） maar dat zijn details。 Qua informatie voegde de tekst enerzijds weinig toe aan wat ik al wist uit andere studies; anderzijds wordt vergeleken bij de biografie van Wallace wel iets meer aandacht besteed aan de transformatie van M's religieuze overtuiging （onder invloed van Vittoria Colonna？） en aan de homo-erotische achtergronden in zijn tekeningen voor Tomaso de Cavalieri。 De meeste ruimte is gereserveerd voor de Sixtijnse kapel， met vele uitvergrotingen。 De weergaven in al mijn andere Michelangelo boeken verbleken bij deze scherpe foto's van de （schoongemaakte） fresco's。 Ondanks het kleine formaat zijn de meeste illustraties goed vormgegeven， heel handzaam in bed bijvoorbeeld。 Door de catalogus en biografie in de laatste 200 blz。 voelde ik me weer wat meer up to date met de recente wetenschappelijke literatuur， o。a。 over omstreden toeschrijvingen zoals die van de Manhatten Marbles。 Een fijne toevoeging aan mijn bibliotheek voor opvallend weinig geld。 。。。more
Esteban
，
Definitivamente está pensada como obra de consulta。 Al final incluye un resumen conciso de los trabajos del artista， yo recomendaría leer eso y el resto utilizarlo para apreciar todas las obras en mayor escala y calidad， a menos que de verdad se piense realizar una investigación。 La calidad de las imágenes es mediana， como era de esperarse en un libro accesible。 Puede llegar a ser muy monótona la prosa de Zöllner， así que eso interfiere bastante con mi apreciación del libro。
Ángela
，
This was absolutely amazing。 This book contains Michaelangelo's complete work， painting， sculpture and architecture。 It talked about each of Michelangelo's works， not only the technical aspects but also what surrounded that work， the story of how and why it came about， who commissioned it etc。 I truly enjoyed it and it made me learn more about art， renaissance Italy and of course Michelangelo "il divino"。 This was absolutely amazing。 This book contains Michaelangelo's complete work， painting， sculpture and architecture。 It talked about each of Michelangelo's works， not only the technical aspects but also what surrounded that work， the story of how and why it came about， who commissioned it etc。 I truly enjoyed it and it made me learn more about art， renaissance Italy and of course Michelangelo "il divino"。 。。。more
❀ Diana ❀
，
Michelangelo has been seen as a genius regardless of the era people reminisced about his life or contemplated his works。 A painter， a sculpture， an architect， a poet。 He never viewed himself as the latter 3， his whole entity was painted by his true calling: painting。
Bogdan Raț
，
"Unless one has seen the Sistine Chapel， it is impossible to form an intuitive concept of what one person is capable of doing。" Goethe。The text is in a bit small format， with respect to the book size， and at times could have been just a little bit more informative， but the pictures and representations are breathtaking， in large format and in great quality。 At least an entire page is dedicated， for example， for each figure featured in the Sistine Chapel ceiling。 It is not at all difficult to unde "Unless one has seen the Sistine Chapel， it is impossible to form an intuitive concept of what one person is capable of doing。" Goethe。The text is in a bit small format， with respect to the book size， and at times could have been just a little bit more informative， but the pictures and representations are breathtaking， in large format and in great quality。 At least an entire page is dedicated， for example， for each figure featured in the Sistine Chapel ceiling。 It is not at all difficult to understand why this book is so hard to find。 I'm glad I found a second-hand copy in great condition。 Taschen should really put out a new edition of this， in XXL or XL format。 。。。more
Sofi Podestá
，
Excelente información puntillosa sobre las obras de arte， detalles atroces que valen la pena saber！
Anna C
，
True story: The last trip 'outside' I made before going into my coronavirus lockdown was to Barnes and Noble， so I could buy this book。 I was like 'Sure， I'll stay inside for as long as you want， if I can bring this beautiful mini Michelangelo encyclopedia with me。' True story: The last trip 'outside' I made before going into my coronavirus lockdown was to Barnes and Noble， so I could buy this book。 I was like 'Sure， I'll stay inside for as long as you want， if I can bring this beautiful mini Michelangelo encyclopedia with me。' 。。。more
Sarah S
，
Beautifully photographed！ Zollner’s commentary was very good。
Merahnaga
，
siapa pun kalian， aku rasa harus membaca buku ini。 terlebih anak-anak seni。 buku yang sangat indah dan menawan dengan lukisan-lukisan yang menakjubkan dan luar biasa。 aku begitu menyukai buku ini。 begitu juga michelangelo。
Anfri Bogart
，
Indispensabile per conoscere da vicino le opere del Genio。 Oltre alle ottime fotografie c'è un interessante testo di supporto。 Indispensabile per conoscere da vicino le opere del Genio。 Oltre alle ottime fotografie c'è un interessante testo di supporto。 。。。more
Stabby
，
The one true treasure of my book collection -- the first book to give Michelangelo's brilliance some justice。Outshined only by seeing Michelangelo's magnificence in person -- once your heartstrings get pulled like that， sadly， there's no returning to the book。。。 The one true treasure of my book collection -- the first book to give Michelangelo's brilliance some justice。Outshined only by seeing Michelangelo's magnificence in person -- once your heartstrings get pulled like that， sadly， there's no returning to the book。。。 。。。more
Erik
，
Huge gorgeous images of the restored Sistine。
E。 G。
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