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4.10: The Last Judgment

  • Page ID
    359634
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    The Last Judgment

    18.jpg

    Artist: Michelangelo
    Medium: Fresco
    Art Historical Time Period: Mannerism (1536–1541)

    Michelangelo’s The Last Judgment is a fresco on the altar wall of the Sistine Chapel that depicts the final judgment of humanity. The culture of Renaissance Italy, particularly during the Mannerist period, was concerned with themes of sin, salvation, and the afterlife. Michelangelo's depiction of this event is innovative because of its dramatic and complex arrangement of figures. Unlike earlier, more restrained representations of judgment, Michelangelo filled the scene with swirling figures, some of them in violent motion. The painting uses exaggerated proportions and poses to express the emotional power of the moment.
    The Last Judgment had a significant influence on later religious art. The dramatic and emotional intensity of the scene set a new standard for depicting biblical events. Artists in the Baroque period would continue to explore these themes with even more intensity and theatricality. Today, The Last Judgment remains one of the most powerful representations of human salvation and damnation.

    Vocabulary

    • Mannerism A style of art that developed after the High Renaissance, characterized by elongated forms and exaggerated emotional expression.
    • Fresco A painting technique where pigments are applied to wet plaster so that they become part of the wall surface.

    Student Authors

    • Elena Bravo ’23 and Carlos Sanchez ’25

    Citations

    • Kemp, Martin. Michelangelo: The Last Judgment and the Art of the Renaissance. HarperCollins, 1998.

    • Wallace, William E. Michelangelo: The Complete Sculpture. Harper & Row, 1984.

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    4.10: The Last Judgment is shared under a not declared license and was authored, remixed, and/or curated by LibreTexts.

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