Michelangelo Buonarroti, The Fall of Phaeton. Black chalk, over stylus underdrawing, on paper, about 1533. © The Trustees of the British Museum
Michelangelo Buonarroti’s last three decades were dominated by the demands of a sequence of Popes, whose requests for frescoes and architectural work challenged him both physically and creatively. However, alongside these public works, he created a variety of much more personal, intimate works during this period.
In this special talk by Sarah Vowles, Curator of Italian & French Prints & Drawings at the British Museum and curator of Michelangelo: The Last Decades, we look at three groups of drawings which Michelangelo created for himself or for those to whom he was close. We start by exploring a group of classically themed drawings he made for his young friend Tommaso de’ Cavalieri in the early 1530s and compare these to the designs he made for the spiritual poet Vittoria Colonna in the early 1540s. Finally, we look at a series of profoundly moving drawings that Michelangelo created for himself in the last ten years of his life, and which offer a poignant glimpse of his intensely personal approach to faith.
The exhibition Michelangelo: The Last Decades is at the British Museum from 2 May to 28 July 2024. Talk ticket-holders will receive a discount code to purchase the exhibition catalogue by Sarah Vowles for £25.50 (15% off the full £35 RRP) via their website.
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This is an online event hosted on Zoom which can be watched live, or on-demand for one month afterwards. You will receive your link to access the event in your email confirmation and the on-demand link after the event ends.