MICHELANGELO (1475 - 1564) As an artist, sculptor, architect and poet Michelangelo di Lodovico Buonarotti Simoni was the archetype of the Renaissance artist, the "Uomo universale". He sculptored two of his most famous works before he was 30: the Pietá and the large sculpture of David.
Pope Julius II. asked him to paint the ceiling of the Sisteen Chapel. The artist spent four long years painting the frescos which garnered admiration from all for their emotional expressiveness, their "terribilitá". 'Il Divino' was a living legend, the first artist to have a biography written about him whilst still alive.