Michelangelo, Pieta, 1499, marble, St. Peter’s Basilica, Vatican City
In the Christian faith, Easter represents Christ’s Resurrection, cleansing all mankind of our sins. Michelangelo’s Pieta is the first work of art I ever saw in person. I was sixteen years old. Experiencing it up close and personal had a profound effect on me and my faith that has lasted a lifetime.
My eyes were fixed on the powerful image just a few feet away from me. The body of Christ lies limp across the lap of His mother, Mary, immediately following His crucifixion. Christ lies spiritless, completely spent, yet surrendered and peaceful. Mary, so strong and beautiful, holds Jesus, but her pain and anguish are startlingly evident as she gazes downward at her lifeless son. She props him gently, lovingly, her fingers gripping his flesh to support the weight of His body as she holds him one final time.
Michelangelo carved this divine image from a single slab of marble, transforming the stone into a realistic, yet idealistic, image that elicits both pain and gratitude. The piece is pyramidal in shape, with the vertex placed at the head of Mary. The smoothness of the marble enhances her purity, her sadness. Michelangelo balances the Renaissance ideals of classical beauty with naturalism, accentuating the importance of the story being told, as well as the humanity of the individuals involved.
How does this piece move you? What do you feel when you gaze upon it? Regardless of how much you know about the artist or the individuals depicted, what do the expressions, scene, composition, and artistic interpretation invoke within you?
Pieta inspires a swirl of emotions, including pain, anguish, beauty, abandonment, love, joy, and sadness. Mankind spends a lifetime struggling with fears and anxieties while trying to find peace. Our complex, fragile humanity is reflected in this moving sculpture masterfully created during the Italian Renaissance.