Michelangelo's Pietà

La Pietà by Michelangelo is one of history's most famous sculptures. The statue was completed in 1499 and depicts Jesus and the Virgin Mary, the latter represented in a very youthful and peaceful state, as a commission for the French cardinal Jean de Billheres.

The piece was originally placed in the Chapel of Santa Petronilla at Saint Peter's in Rome; however, it was moved several times throughout the years to accomodate renovations, causing substantial damage to Mary's fingers. In a highly infamous move in 1972, a geologist attacked the sculpture with a hammer, after which La Pietà had to undergo major restoration.

The piece now resides inside a bullet-proof box, once again at Saint Peter's.

Getting Started: Creepy Art

The Northern Renaissance is famous for its luscious and sensual use of oil paint, idealized fair skinned Virgin Mary's, and profusely ornamented and detailed paintings.  Beauty is undeniable with these elegant paintings. Yet, you can't know good until you know evil.   Likewise, you can't know beauty until you know ugly, which is why the depictions of what is 'not beautiful' was so common during the 15th and 16th centuries.

 

Perhaps it is the irony that appeals to me most: the most talented artists painting the grotesque, the odd, the other, with the most valuable materials that were known to exist.   Considering the role Christianity played in daily life--- it seems most likely that painting what was 'not beautiful' was more of a way to cope with a fear of going to hell......