FAMOUS

RENAISSANCE
ARTWORKS AND
ARTIST

MICHELANGELO DI LODOVICO BOUNARROTI SIMONI

PIETA

ThePiet(14981499) is a
world-famous work of
Renaissancesculpture by
Michelangelo Buonarroti, housed
inSt. Peter's Basilica,Vatican City
. It is the first of a number of
works of thesame themeby the
artist. The statue was
commissioned for the French
CardinalJean de Bilhres, who
was a representative in Rome.

The sculpture, inCarrara

marble, was made for the
cardinal's funeral monument,
but was moved to its current
location, the first chapel on
the right as one enters the
basilica, in the 18th century.
It is the only piece
Michelangelo ever signed.

This famous work of art depicts

the body ofJesuson the lap of
his motherMaryafter the
Crucifixion. The theme is of
Northern origin, popular by that
time in France but not yet in
Italy. Michelangelo's
interpretation of thePietis
unprecedented in Italian
sculpture. It is an important
work as it balances the

DAVID

Davidis amasterpieceofRenaissance
sculpturecreated between 1501 and 1504,
by Italian artistMichelangelo. It is a 5.17metre (17.0ft)[a]marble statueof a standing
male nude. The statue represents theBiblical
hero,David, a favoured subject in the art of
Florence.[1]Originally commissioned as one of
a series of statues of prophets to be
positioned along the roofline of the east end
ofFlorence Cathedral, the statue was placed
instead in a public square, outside the
Palazzo della Signoria, the seat of civic
government in Florence, where it was
unveiled on 8 September 1504.

Because of the nature of the hero

it represented, the statue soon
came to symbolize the defense of
civil liberties embodied in the
Republic of Florence, an
independentcity-statethreatened
on all sides by more powerful rival
states and by the hegemony of the
Medicifamily. The eyes of David,
with a warning glare, were turned
towardsRome.[2]The statue was
moved to theGalleria

LEONARDO DI SER PIERO DA

VINCI

MONA LISA

TheMona Lisa(Monna LisaorLa Giocondain

Italian;La Jocondein French) is a half-length
portrait of a woman by theItalianartistLeonardo da
Vinci, which has been acclaimed as "the best
known, the most visited, the most written about,
the most sung about, the most parodied work of art
in the world."[1]
The painting, thought to be a portrait ofLisa
Gherardini, the wife of Francesco del Giocondo, is in
oil on a whiteLombardypoplarpanel, and is
believed to have been painted between 1503 and
1506, although Leonardo may have continued
working on it as late as 1517. It was acquired by
KingFrancis I of Franceand is now the property of
theFrench Republic, on permanent display at
The Louvremuseum inParissince 1797.

The ambiguity of the subject's

expression, which is frequently
described as enigmatic, the
monumentality of the
composition, the subtle
modeling of forms and the
atmospheric illusionism were
novel qualities that have
contributed to the continuing
fascination and study of the

THE LAST SUPPER

Sistine Madonna, also calledLa Madonna di

San Sisto, is anoil paintingby the Italian artist
Raphael. Commissioned in 1512 byPope Julius II
as analtarpiecefor the church of San Sisto,
Piacenza, it was one of the lastMadonnaspainted
by the artist. Relocated toDresdenfrom 1754,
the well-known painting has been particularly
influential in Germany. AfterWorld War II, it was
relocated toMoscowfor a decade before it was
returned to Germany. There, it resides as one of
the central pieces in theGemldegalerie Alte
Meister. The painting has been highly praised by
many notable critics, andGiorgio Vasaricalled it a
"a truly rare and extraordinary work". [1]

RAFFAELLO SANZIO DA URBINO

The Sistine Madonna

TRANSFIGURATION

DONATO DI NICCOLO DI BETTO

BARDI

DAVID

 Statue

of
St. George
in
Orsanmiche
le
, Florence