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Historical Michelangelo and the Pope's Ceiling by Ross King $15.00 / Penguin Books / 2003 In 1508, at the age of 33, Michelangelo undertook the monumental task of painting the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel in Rome, a project that would take him almost four and a half years to complete. Ross King writes a fascinating account of the political, personal, religious, and professional circumstances that surrounded this feat in Michelangelo and the Pope's Ceiling. Pope Julius II and his relationship with Michelangelo form one of the compelling sub-plots of the story. Michelangelo was as moody and aloof as Julius was autocratic and imperious, and by King's account, the negotiations between the two before Michelangelo agreed to take on the Sistine chapel project nearly collapsed. Julius had commissioned Michelangelo to sculpt his funeral statuary but then abandoned the project after Michelangelo had already paid for the marble, leaving him feeling betrayed. Indeed, he actually fled Rome for his native Florence to evade Julius and had to be wooed back. King's account covers the period from May, 1508, when Michelangelo began the project of restoring the damaged fresco in the chapel named in honor of Pope Sixtus IV, to its ultimate unveiling in 1512. It was a time of political turmoil, caused to some extent by the ambitious Pope himself. Known as the Warrior Pope, Julius engaged in a number of battles to unify the Italian peninsula against France, which threatened several times to overrun the country, actually leading some of the bloody battles. To say this was a time of political instability is almost to understate the circumstances in which Michelangelo worked. King also describes the technical challenges of painting the fresco, from the difficulties of painting on wet plaster to the intricacies of scaffolding. He goes into detail describing the creation of many of the stunning panels that comprise the vault of the chapel. King also relates the myths and biblical stories behind many of the works of art and provides a look at Michelangelo's sly humor in some. (In a small detail of one panel, a naked child is shown "making the fig" at a sibyl, the Italian equivalent of giving the finger.) Other renowned artists of the day are included in King's account of the time. In sharp contrast to the suspicious, homely perfectionist that was Michelangelo, King gives a picture of the gentlemanly, handsome Raphael, a master painter who was in virtual competition with Michelangelo in creating his own stunning works of art. Both sought prestigious commissions and the backing of influential church officials. King also relates the problems that beset Michelangelo as he tried to take care of his family in Florence while he was pursuing his career in Rome. He often had to bail out his father Ludovico, who made foolish financial decisions, and a good portion of Michelangelo's earnings went toward the care of his brothers, who had medical and financial woes of their own. With color plates of the ceiling and artwork and portraiture of the era. Michelangelo and the Pope's Ceiling provides a thorough, vivid, and engaging account of the creation of the Sistine Chapel ceiling. --Charles Rammelkamp

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