Create a research portrait of a well-known artist, explain how his or Essay

Create a research portrait of a well-known artist, explain how his or her work responds to particular social issues - Essay Example ject, requiring the artist to spend years painting in wet plaster rather than working on his sculpture or other projects, some might wonder what prompted Michelangelo to undertake this project rather than allowing some other artist the dubious honor. Just how much freedom Michelangelo had in this decision is an often discussed topic. It might also be wondered whether the subject of the painting was determined by Michelangelo himself or the Pope who commissioned him for the project. To more fully appreciate the process that contributed to the creation of the Sistine Ceiling, it is necessary to understand the details regarding the commission of the project, why it was commissioned, why Michelangelo accepted the commission given the difficulties involved, how he met these challenges given the media and subject involved as well as his final assessment of the results. It is widely accepted that Pope Julius II commissioned Michelangelo to paint the Sistine Chapel ceiling as none other had the power and authority to force the artist back to Rome. Michelangelo had fled the city only two years earlier after the Pope first commissioned him to create approximately 40 sculptures in the most lavish Papal tomb designed to date and then refused to honor his portion of the contract. In addition, the work being requested of Michelangelo was painting rather than sculpture which he preferred. Other accounts indicate the idea of having the ceiling completed by Michelangelo was the idea of Donato Bramante, who intended to discredit Michelangelo’s daunting reputation. â€Å"In Michelangelo’s eyes, Bramante had persuaded the pope to abandon the project [of the tomb] by warning him that it was bad luck to have one’s tomb carved during one’s lifetime, and had then proposed an altogether different commission for the sculptor, a task at wh ich he knew Michelangelo could not possibly succeed† (King, 2003, p. 11). Work commenced on the project in 1536 under Pope Paul III and was