The Creation The Downfall of Adam and Eve Three Stories of Noah Pendentive/architectural space
Prophets Sibyls
Ancestors of Christ The Last Judgement
Around them are medallions and triangular spandrels formed by illusionistic painted architecture (Fig. 6.19).
Michelangelo began painting at the end of Genesis – the story of Noah – but took a break after the Creation of Eve. Having studied the work from the ground, he simplified the next composition, the Creation of Adam, which has become the most celebrated of the ceiling’s scenes. It shows the artist’s deep understanding of the human form and the influence of Classical sculptures such as the Apollo Belvedere.
Technique and Colour
The artist worked entirely alone on a high scaffold using buon fresco. Contrary to popular myth, he did not lie on his back, but stood, and, in a great burst of energy, completed the huge task in just four years.
The strong colour contrasts of soft grey painted architecture with golden yellows, pinks, deep blues and peach made the complicated scenes easier to follow from nearly 20 metres below, especially in the natural lighting of the time.
The colour was restored in cleaning during the 1980s. Figure 6.19 Design scheme of the ceiling.
Depiction of God Michelangelo’s depiction of God the Father was a complete departure from traditional imagery. In the Creation of Light, the stern, bearded figure surges across the empty sky with his great billowing
Figure 6.20 The Creation of Adam, 1512, by Michelangelo, fresco, Sistine Chapel, the Vatican.
