Michelangelo was an extremely famous artist for his time who created groundbreaking works of art that are still influential today. Most of Michelangelo's works discussed are his later works, such as the Risen Christ or the Capitoline Hill. However, an extremely influential earlier piece of his is the Pietà. Piety is a Christian depiction only seen in art and has never been described in the Bible. It shows the Virgin Mary holding her recently deceased son, Jesus, in her lap before his burial. This sculpture is a typical scene of Christian art; however, Michelangelo gave a new interpretation to this classic. Michelangelo gives deeper meaning to the pieta scene by implementing new and intricate details, using lighting, and creating new character movements to allude to the resurrection rather than the death of Christ. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essay Michelangelo Buonarroti was born on March 6, 1475 in Caprese, Italy, although from childhood to young adulthood he grew up in Florence, Italy. At a very young age he was entrusted to a family of stonemasons who taught him the trade. Michelangelo was well educated, however, he was always much more interested in art. At the age of just 13, Michelangelo took an apprenticeship with the painter Domenico Ghirlandaio and it was there that he was first taught the fresco technique. A year later, Michelangelo studied classical sculpture in the gardens of Lorenzo de'Medici and then studied with the famous sculptor Bertoldo di Giovanni. After being deceived by the ancient appearance of one of Michelangelo's sculptures, Cardinal Riario invited Michelangelo to Rome in 1498 and remained there for the rest of his life. Not long after, Cardinal Jean Bilhères de Lagraulas commissioned the Pietà. Cardinal Jean Bilhères was a representative of King Charles VIII of France and was decorating his side chapel in St. Peter's Basilica. Cardinal Jean Bilhères hired Michelangelo to create a statue to place above his tomb. With the completion of the Pietà, Michelangelo's career took off and it wasn't long before he was, and still is, known as one of the finest artists who ever lived. Cardinal Jean de Bilhères de Lagraulas is believed to have been born in 1434 in Gascony. , France. He was appointed bishop of Lombez, France in 1473 at the age of 39. On 2 December 1491 he was appointed coadjutor bishop of Saintes, France, only to resign a year later. On 20 September 1493 Jean de Bilhères de Lagraulas became cardinal and, after being appointed bishop of three other French cities, became representative of King Charles VIII in the capital of Italy, Rome. Cardinal Jean de Bilhères was a passionate art collector and had a special fondness for ancient Roman sculptures. He placed them in his villa in Rome and boasted of his ability to distinguish true ancient art from fakes. However, he fooled an art dealer by saying that one of Michelangelo's Cupid pieces was Ancient Roman art. After discovering that it was a fake, he contacted the dealer to meet the artist. Cardinal Jean de Bilhères was amazed by Michelangelo's precision and hired him to create a sculpture to place in his side tomb chapel. In 1498 Michelangelo began his work on the Pietà. In the Renaissance period, the papacy and Christianity as a whole had great control over the Western European world. The Pope, being the head of the Catholic Church, ruled over every Catholic, including kings. This would have meant that the papacy, in theory and sometimes in practice, was also in charge of all Western European politics.During the making of Michelangelo's Pietà, a war over Italian territory and a civil dispute over the legitimacy of the Pope had just broken out in Europe. Only 17 years earlier, the papacy was for the first time in the hands of a Spaniard; Pope Alexander VI. Many Christians were dissatisfiedAfter the election of a Spanish pope, they also believed that his family had helped Alexander commit simony. At the same time, Alexander, along with the help of Spain and Maximilian, had just managed to drive the French out of Naples since their invasion four years earlier. The previous pope, Innocent VIII, had promised that the French would gain control over Naples because its king would not pay papal taxes. However, neither he nor Alexander later recognized this promise and so in 1494 the French invaded Naples. In 1493, the Pope together with Maximilian and the Spanish army managed to drive out the French, however, with the completion of the Pietà in 1499 the French had begun their second invasion, this time taking Naples, Milan and Genoa. Clearly, Michelangelo would have been working on the Pietà during a time of great civil unrest and social change in Rome. Michelangelo's Pietà was created between 1498 and 1499 and was originally located in a domed side chapel of St. Peter's Basilica. It has been moved many times, one of which was to New York for the 1964 World's Fair. It was then placed in its current location, a different, regular side chapel at St. Peter's, behind a glass wall. The Pietà is made from a single block of Carrara marble from the city of Carrara in Italy. Michelangelo is said to have said that the Pietà was made from the most perfect block of marble he had ever used. He polished and refined the Pietà more than any other marble sculpture he has ever created, just a testament to this entry. In the Pietà, Mary holds her son's body with his torso lying on her lap. One hand holds the upper part of Jesus' body while the other is extended to his left, the direction that would originally have been the entrance to the domed side chapel. Despite Maria's gestures, she looks down at her son who lies in a lifeless position with his head falling back and his right hand falling to the ground. At first glance Michelangelo's Pietà appears extremely similar to previous pieta scenes, however, after examining the details of his Pietà, this proves to be false. In the original dome natural lighting would have come from above and illuminated the Pietà. This would have cast a shadow on Mary's face due to her hood, but would have cast a bright light on Jesus' body. Mary's outstretched hand is significantly larger than her body and other hand, however, when viewed from the front, this detail is hidden behind one of Jesus' knees. Mary's other hand holds Jesus under his armpit, but does not directly touch his skin. She holds it under a piece of fabric taken from a fold of her dress. Although Jesus aged into adulthood, Mary does not appear to have aged. She still has an extremely young face that looks no more than a day older than when she gave birth to Jesus. Furthermore, Mary's face is not sad, as is often seen in pietas, but rather has a hint of joy or relief that is can see in his calm eyes and slightly upturned lips. Another detail worth mentioning is the strap that runs across her chest. It goes from the left shoulder, between the breasts, to the right side. This strap also features Michelangelo's signature, his only trademark ever registered. It is clear that Jesus died recently due to his death on the cross. He has the sign of the crucifixion on his right hand and.