Michelangelo drawings on view > Located on the campus of the College of William & Mary, the Muscarelle Museum of Art is the only U.S. venue for “Michelangelo: The Genesis of the Sistine,” an exhibition marking 550 years since the Italian Renaissance master was born. On view will be 38 objects offering a glimpse into the thoughts, ideas, struggles, and breakthroughs that shaped one of history’s greatest masterpieces — the frescoes of the Sistine Chapel ceiling inside the Pope’s Vatican palace in Rome.
At a Glance:
MICHELANGELO: THE GENESIS OF THE SISTINE
Muscarelle Museum of Art
Williamsburg, Virginia
muscarelle.wm.edu
Through May 28, 2025
Of the hundreds of drawings Michelangelo created for that ceiling, less than 50 survive, and nearly half will be on view at the Muscarelle. This show marks the global debut of a long-overlooked drawing hypothesized to be the artist’s first sketch in preparation for the ceiling, plus the U.S. debut of seven drawings. After 15 years of research, organizing curator Adriano Marinazzo has gathered these key loans, as well as engravings, lithographs, and other unique items. The latter include a portrait of Michelangelo by Giuliano Bugiardini, two self-portraits Michelangelo sketched while he was painting the ceiling, and a letter to Michelangelo from his friend Francesco Granacci.
The exhibition’s design and installation will be innovative, with low lighting and life-size reproductions of such iconic frescoes as “The Creation of Adam” to help visitors appreciate the ceiling’s huge scale. Marinazzo has created an immersive video, “This Is Not My Art,” which brings Michelangelo’s illusionistic painted architecture to life, transforming his two-dimensional designs into a three-dimensional digital experience.
The Muscarelle’s original building, opened in 1983, was recently expanded by more than 42,000 square feet, designed by Pelli Clarke & Partners as part of the college’s new Martha Wren Briggs Center for the Visual Arts. “Michelangelo” is the first major exhibition gracing this space, and it makes special sense because the Muscarelle has an impressive track record of Renaissance exhibitions, including Michelangelo in 2013, Leonardo in 2015, and Botticelli in 2017. Lending once again are several leading Italian museums, including the Uffizi, Casa Buonarroti, and the Musei Reali Torino.
Adriano Marinazzo will deliver public lectures on April 28.
