MICHELANGELO IN FLORENCE
Michael Barbour, art guide
Monday 25–Wednesday 27 January 5.00 pm COURSE FEES R345; Staff and students R173
This three-lecture course delves into the life and times of Michelangelo. In his long life, Michelangelo Buonarroti (1475–1564) lived in Florence for only about 30 or 35 years, and yet it is Florence, more than Rome, that he is associated with most strongly in the universal popular mind.
Born in Caprese near Florence, he trained and studied in the city’s artistic and cultural circles under the patronage of the Medici at the height of the Florentine Renaissance.
His youthful masterpiece, the famous statue of David, undertaken when he was 25, set the seal on his infallible genius in the eyes of the Florentines. Vasari echoed the nickname ‘Il Divino’ that was probably already circulating in the city. The David became an emblem of Florence’s republican pride and humanist vigour and is a work of art and an image that is recognised globally.
His unfinished sculptures, The Slaves, and architectural contributions to the New Sacristy and Laurentian Library form part of his legacy that endures in public squares, churches and museums where his works continue to define the city’s artistic identity and attract scholars and visitors from around the world.
Lecture titles
- Architecture
- Sculpture
- Other works
Recommended reading
Bull, G. (ed.). 1999. Michelangelo, Life, Letters, and Poetry. Oxford University Press. Condivi, A. 1904. The Life of Michelangelo Buonarroti. DB Updike.
De Tolnay, C. 1940. Michelangelo Studies. The Art Bulletin, 22(3), pp. 127–137.
Symonds, J. 2019. The Life of Michelangelo. BookRix. https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/11242
Forster, J. 1892. Lives of the Most Eminent Painters, Sculptors, and Architects: Translated from the Italian of Giorgio Vasari. George Bell & Sons. https://archive.org/details/livesmosteminen02richgoog/page/n10/ mode/2up
TO BOOK: https://www.webtickets.co.za/v2/performance.aspx?itemid=1602765031