385050 5 Location 515950 <p>The Sistine Chapel is, without a doubt, the most outstanding and world-renowned feature of the Vatican Museums. Michelangelo dedicated many years of his life to painting the chapel's awe-inspiring ceiling. He painted alone, climbing up scaffolding and often using only one hand. It would take four, long years to complete the paintings, but in the end, the almost superhuman effort was worth it: the paintings, which depict episodes of the Genesis, are some of the most magnificent art pieces the world has ever known. The scenes include the Creation of Adam and Eve, the Flood, the Banishment from the Garden of Eden and many biblical characters, such as the Prophets, Sibyls and several Nudes carrying medallions with inscriptions from the Book of Kings.</p><p>The series of paintings are almost overwhelming. The eye is not granted even a moment's rest, at times creating an almost unbearable sensory overload (a feeling that has even been given a scientific name – the Stendhal Syndrome). Michelangelo started without a precise vision of the final work, painting as ideas came to him, guided solely by his immense artistic genius. There exists a noticeable difference between the earlier, more modest and restrained section of the ceiling, and the later half, in which the colours are far more vivid and the figures more imposing. It is almost as if Michelangelo stopped midway and decided to shift the style of his great work, perhaps realising the immensely moving effect it would produce in those who gaze upon it.</p><p>One of the most heart-wrenching paintings is the scene of the Last Judgement that Michelangelo painted onto the chapel's main wall. Many experts believe that this is the cornerstone of the chapel and that all of the other paintings revolve around this one, despite the fact that it was commissioned years after the ceiling had been completed. The artist spent six years on the piece, from 1535 until 1541, and created a stunning painting that shows the good souls ascending to heaven and the condemned being dragged into hell. The force of the work and vivid character of the figures is deeply moving, offering insight into Michelangelo's pessimistic worldview as well as his great artistic gift.</p><p>Although Michelangelo's paintings are what the chapel is most famous for, the structure would still be a wonderful work of art without them. The paintings representing scenes from the life of Christ and Moses were created by artists as renowned as Botticelli, Perugino, Ghirlandaio and Signorelli, four of the greatest masters of Italian Renaissance art.</p><p>Taking photographs in the Sistine Chapel is forbidden. However, there is no sign advising visitors of this fact, and the security guards are far too busy looking out for other transgressions, such as visitors touching the walls, sitting on the floor or speaking to loudly. Therefore, when a flash goes off, a voice comes over the speaker system, advising visitors in all imaginable languages that photography is forbidden in the chapel – by then, however, it is already too late.</p><p>The Sistine Chapel is also the place where the Conclave meets after a pontiff's death to decide on a successor.</p><p><a href="/go?l=http%3A%2F%2Fmv.vatican.va%2F3_EN%2Fpages%2FCSN%2FCSN_Main.html&tracking=external" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">http://mv.vatican.va/3_EN/pages/CSN/CSN_Main.html</a></p> 2006-07-23T02:16:29-07:00 633339904 2006-06-16T17:00:00-07:00 0 -9223372036854775790 214045 1830786 385050 0 183582 0.164023622913835 2006-06-15T17:00:00-07:00 Published 100.0 2006-07-23T02:16:57-07:00 89178 0