Evening star., 1928-04-29
Continued from Third Pagel


was completed. full Of the characteristic
grandeur and sublimity OF Michelangelo's s
stvle: but as 1t was intended to be lifted
un on some lofty pedestal 1t seemed
exaggerated In size and features when
seen on the ground, and perhaps julius
did not care as much for 1t as artists do.
Two other figures made for the same
Qrouo-the slaves, or captiveS-Were
easier Of comprehension. 1t was the
common Judgment that they rivaled the
finest sculpturN of Hcllenistic Greece
But white the work had gone on
Julius had been drawn into so many
political cntanglements, military en-
forprises and financial obligations that
he had lost interest IN the tomb that
was to give him immortal life. His
payments to the artist ceased; time
and again when Angelo came. in bitter
humiliation, to ask for funds to pay for
material and assistance :he Pope was
too busy to see him. AT last the angry
sculptor fed not only from the Vati-
can. but from Rome leaving for the
pone this simple note,
Most Holy Father | was this
morning driven from the palace by
order of Your Holiness. If you require
me in the future you can seek me else
where than in Rome. "
Unmovabic In RefuSaIs.
He never rested till he had reached
Florence. and to repeated messages
from Julius that came to him there,
asking him to return, he answered with
unmovrble refuSaiS Seven months
later they met at Bologna: the Pope
twho had come to besiege the city and
include IL among the pHpal StateS).
a
twinkle in his cycs--for having made
him come half way for a reconciliation
Angelo could not resist the Old man,
and before he knew what was happen
iag he found himself again at work
for the Pope making a colossal bronze
statue of julius, Ia feet in height, for
the Church OF San Pctronio at Boz
logna. Three years later 05lD the
enemies OF the Pope rccaptured the
city and melted the statue for cannon.
And now the inascapable pontif had
a new task for Micheiangelo: He must
come to Rome and paint the ceiling OF
the Sistine Chapel The sculptor
begged to be let of. he protested that
he was no painter; he foresaw the diff
ficulties Of adapting perspective for
such a height. and the immense strain
that would be involved in lying on
ones back on a scaffo!d long enough
to turn such a ceiling into work of
art, But the Pope insisted, and even
the stubborn Michelangelo yielded
when julius threatened" The artist
was offered many aides. and began
work with them; but soon he came to
ehe conclusion that they were more
nuisance than help. and. dismissing
them all, he set himsslf 10 do the enor~
nous work alone. For four years he
toiled, practically living on the scat
folding. often eating and sleeping there,
When the task was completed the
artists back was bent forever, and his
spirit for many years exhausted MY
life is there on the ceiling of the Sis
tine Chapel" he would say.
His Richest Composition.
He had painted on the ceiling, the
epic OF the Old Testament. He began
with the creation of the world. and in
one of his greatest pictures portrayed
the origination of sun. planets, earth
and moon Then In another picture
as great as anything in the history of
painting. he painted the creation OF
man. visualizing the Deity as convinc-
ingly as universal power can ever be
represented in the shape OF man, THE
meant to Michelangelo all that which
gives existence It's value: the crown
Of life in its artistic. inexhaustihle di-
rection; the naked human figure, espe-
cially the male body, whose beauty
touched him greatly. 1t Is but natural,
then. that the Creation of Man be-
came at once his simplest and richest
composition the most complete paint
ing that ne has produced
Note how the artist, while hts co.
temporarieS were portraying the story
OF Jesus and Mary, gave himself above
all TO the Sterner subjects OF the Old
Testament. Michelangelo saw life like
Isaiah. Dante and Milton. rather than
like Jesus, St Francis or Raphael This
ceiling is the history Of man as seen
through the tempestuous imagination
Of Hebrew prophet Nevertheless. as
the tender romance OF Ruth hides
among the Sublimities Of the Jewish
Bible. so here in these tremendous pic
lures there are quiet touches. see, for
example, how profoundly Adam Slum-
bers while Eve Is taken from his side;
never did man sleep more deeply.
And what powerful figures each OF
them not only large (as they had 10
be for right perspective from below
but muscular. Eve herself. in The Fall
Is not so much beautiful in the modern
sense q. G., slim and coy. signifying
sex alone, without capacity or mother
hood, but beautiful in the biological
Sense--healthy, vigorous and flt for the
sternest functions Of responsible wom-
anhood
Masterpiece to Masterpiece.
The eyes move on from masterpiece
10 masterpiece, from the terror-stricken
faces Of Adam and Eve in the "Expul-
sion from Paradise" TO the fine group OF
interlocked figures in The Flood"
from the strange representation of
Jonah tn the perfect portraits OF Zach
ar1ah and Ezekiel: nowhere I'm painting
are there figures finer than these two.
There Is hardly anything here from the
New Testament. what Ia not Hebraic
is pagan, like the dark majesty OF the
"Cumaean Sihyl," the feminine per-
fection OF the "Libyan Sibyl," and the
intent youth whose nude frame rests
over the head OF the sadly meditative
jeremiah This. after all. is greater
than THE Last Supper" OF Leonardo
and any one Of 10 portraits here would
equal Raphaeis faultless Julius IL"
And all done without any model before
the artist, all drawn out Of passion
ately thorough observation of every
| human muscle and curve, tireiegs
| memory and creative imagination and
tnconveivable patience
No one had been permitted TO see the
work TIL IL was complete, except Ra-
phael, as we have said. and the Pope.
whose enxiety that the task be finished
80 angered Angelo that occasionally he
would let plank Of the Scaffolding fall
near his holiness head. as the best
means 0f reducing the frequency Of
these disturbing visits. The artist de-
mlurge was engaged IN creating the
world anew. and wished 10 be alone
With God But IN 1909 the public were
admitted and the comment ~ all Rome