Michelangelo at the MET: A Once in a Lifetime Exhibition

One of history’s most admired artists, Michelangelo Buonarroti, will soon be the protagonist of the largest retrospective in its history at The Metropolitan Museum of Art.

Portrait of Michelangelo by Daniele da Volterra

Michelangelo Buonarroti (Italian, 1475–1564). Studies for the Three Labors of Hercules, ca. 1530. Red chalk, 10 11/16 x 16 5/8 in. (27.2 x 42.2 cm). Royal Collection Trust / © Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II 2017, www.royalcollection.org.uk

This is an exceptionally rare opportunity to experience first-hand the unique genius of Michelangelo. Daniel H. Weiss

The Torment of Saint Anthony

This selection of more than 200 works will show that Michelangelo's imagery and drawings still speak with an arresting power today. Five hundred years seem to melt away in looking at his art. Carmen C. Bambach

Opening on November 13, the exhibition, titled "Michelangelo: Divine Draftsman and Designer," will explore Michelangelo’s rich legacy as a supreme draftsman and designer and his resulting influence on art. Calling it a "once-in-a-lifetime exhibition," the MET is set to present an extraordinary range and number of works by the artist, featuring 128 of his drawings, three of his marble sculptures, his earliest painting, his wood architectural model for a chapel vault, as well as a substantial body of complementary works by other artists for comparison and context.

"This is an exceptionally rare opportunity to experience first-hand the unique genius of Michelangelo," said Daniel H. Weiss, President and CEO of The Met. "The exhibition will display the magnificent beauty of Michelangelo's works in order to deepen our understanding of his creative process."

Michelangelo Buonarroti: an Italian Genius

Italian artist Michelangelo di Lodovico Buonarroti Simoni, whose talents spanned the realms of visual art, architecture and poetry was born in Tuscany during Italy’s High Renaissance period and was known as Il Divino ("the divine one"). His artistic achievements distinguished him from his contemporaries and as a matter of fact, was commissioned by several of the wealthiest and most powerful men of his day, including popes and others affiliated with the Catholic Church. His most notable works include the David, sculpted only during his twenties, the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel and Pietà. Michelangelo’s drawings, beautiful artworks on their own, also give you a unique insight into how the artist worked and thought. Michelangelo's genius left an indelible mark on the history of art.

Italian Master Michelangelo at The Met

According to the museum’s press release, the pieces were "selected from 54 public and private collections in the United States and Europe, the exhibition will bring together the largest group of original drawings by Michelangelo ever assembled for public display" Among the highlights of the exhibitions will be a collection of drawings Michelangelo made for the Italian nobleman Tommaso de' Cavalieri, his first known painting, believed to have been created when he was only twelve, 'The Torment of Saint Anthony' and a sketch the artist drew for his final Vatican Palace fresco.

Dr. Carmen C. Bambach, curator of the exhibition, commented: "This selection of more than 200 works will show that Michelangelo's imagery and drawings still speak with an arresting power today. Five hundred years seem to melt away in looking at his art."

The exhibition "Michelangelo: Divine Draftsman and Designer," is sponsored by Morgan Stanley  and will open at the MET on November 13 and will run through February 18, 2018.

For more info on the event clich here >>