Composition
The huge scene has no frame. The composition is symmetrical and organised, but there is no landscape or perspective.
The human figure
Over 300 figures are depicted in an amazing variety of contorted and energetic poses. All the figures were originally nude.
The swirling mass of humanity floats around the large and powerful figure of Christ. He steps forward with a great sweeping gesture to say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you’, and to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil.’
Style
Michelangelo changed from the traditional depiction of this scene; the distorted, elongated figures are more in the style of Mannerism.
Mannerism:An overly stylised ‘manner’ of painting from the late Italian Renaissance. Artists Portormo and Bronzino portrayed the human body in complex, witty compositions and unnatural, vibrant colours.
Colours
A deep blue sky dominates The Last Judgment and the bright golden yellow of the light behind Christ radiates out from the centre.
Influences
Raphael was strongly influenced by Michelangelo, and Mannerism developed directly from the work of Michelangelo.
Architecture 272 APPRECIATING ART: SECTION 2, PART 3 Fig. 22.22 The dome of St Peter’s Basilica, Rome St Peter’s Basilica
Pope Julius II’s grandiose tomb was never to be, but in 1506 he ordered the old Basilica of St Peter to be demolished. The building of the new St Peter’s continued for almost 150 years.
Several architects were involved and the design was altered many times. Michelangelo became chief architect at 81 years of age and as was typical, he poured all his energy into the project. He redesigned the basilica to a square and centralised the entire space with a huge semi- circular dome.
Only the drum was built when he died and the design of the dome was changed to an egg shape for structural reasons (Fig. 22.22). However, Michelangelo’s double Corinthian columns on the drum were already in place. These give the structure its strong upward movement.
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