I Saw a lot of Naked Men...

and heard a lot about hell. That was a comment I heard from another member of the brass choir yesterday after our peformance. We played during a lecture on the Sistine Chapel. I sure did learn a lot sitting there listening to the art professional.

I learned that the Sistine Chapel is very plain looking on the outside.



I've always known about the famous Michaelangelo painting The Creation of Adam...
^{(You can click on these next three pics for a bigger look. These puny pics don't do the paintings justice, as if any pic could.)}



but I never realized that it was part of a whole series of paintings on the ceiling.



The paintings are all part of a theme and the ceiling paintings show, in order: God Separating Light from Darkness, Creation of Sun-Moon-Plants, Separation of the Sky and Water, Creation of Adam (which is the center), Creation of Eve, Temptation of Expulsion, Sacrifice of Noah, The Flood, and Drunkenness of Noah.

I also learned that all the walls, and the ceiling were painted. I didn't know all that was covered by the most famous artists of the day that were commissioned to do the work. I must not have paid close enough attention in Western Cult class in college...oh, that's right, I skipped a lot of lectures! LOL



I was most facinated by the painting of The Last Judgement. I learned that Michaelangelo actually came back 30 years after painting the ceiling, to paint the altar. He had the brick chiseled as well, and the top part of the altar protrudes outward. You can't see it in the pictures, but there is actual depth there. That would be something neat to see in real life! His influence for the painting, at least the part where he depicts hell, came from Dante's "Divine Comedy" which was a favorite read of his at that time in his life.



I also learned that Michaelangelo was given a hard time for all the nudity he boldly displayed in the Chapel paintings. It was probably very controversial at the time, I'm sure, and when asked why he did it, he explained that humans are made in the image of God, nothing shameful about that! The human body is beautiful, and he preferred to paint all of it.



When we were dismissed, the professor said that he hoped we learned a bit about the Chapel and its history. That's when I heard the comment from a fellow brass player "well, I saw a lot of naked men and heard a lot about hell!" LOLOL

The program was put on in the First United Methodist Church in Humboldt, TN and in affiliation with The West Tennessee Regional Art Center. While I could have thought of better things to do on a Sunday afternoon, I must say that it was rather interesting to learn more about the Sistine Chapel, Michaelangelo, and the many other artists that contributed to its painting and beautiful decorations.

For more information and/or a virtual tour, go to the Vatican.