The Sistine Chapel

It its original conception, the figures of the Last Judgment were planned as nudes. Two theological schools of thought existed regarding the body in the afterlife: those who believed that the glorified bodies of the elect would be nude and free of lust, and those who believed that the saints would not only be clothed but adorned. Believing in “the resurrection of the flesh,” Michelangelo belonged to the former group, and he originally depicted Saint Blaise and all the saints in the panoply of heaven without clothing and with powerful and vibrant physiques. The papal chapel at the time was not the tourist attraction it eventually became. It was a sanctuary in which the lofty ideas of art, theology, and symbolism catered to the taste of an intellectual elite. Nevertheless, some who had access to this sacred space disagreed vehemently with what they saw the artist painting, so much so that the fresco later ran the risk of being destroyed. The papal master of ceremonies himself, Biagio da Cesena, watched as the fresco was being painted, and declared that it was disgraceful to portray so many nudes in a chapel—that the art was better suited for a public bathhouse or tavern. When he heard of this, Michelangelo took his revenge by including Biagio’s portrait as one of the major demons of hell. When Beagio complained to the pope, the pontiff reportedly replied that had the artist placed the master of ceremonies in purgatory then perhaps he could have intervened, but since he had been consigned to hell, it was beyond his jurisdiction.

The Magnificat