La Pieta - Dream Concrete

This poetic commentary is about Michelangelo's first La Pieta, meaning mother and son. This magnificent work of art was created in 1498-1499, when the artist was 23.

Rest you well, La Pieta, of the eternal city, within The Vatican,

    where beats the heart of the Basilica.

La Pieta, raised on high, stone of Calvary her resting place,

            t’was crafted in remembrance of this death.

Behind her, the wall is of stunning deep gold marble,

            like the setting of the sun.

She is sitting on a bench, legs bent to bear her burden,

            her weighty cause an immeasurable loss.

Her scarfs of soft linen cover her hair, wrapped like a halo,          

            of ancient cream and ivory stone.

Her head is bowed down, there is a serenity to her sadness,

            calm midst the violent death of her child.

Her eyes are closed, as if catching her breath in this posture,

            even as her Son lays dead in her arms.          

Her expression of love is so deep, so unfathomable, only a

            mother could own such a look.

 

Tell me, do you feel the whisper of the wind sweeping ‘round you,

as it flows under the dome of St. Peter?

 

Her appearance, as she cradles her Son like an infant,

            is reflected in her own youthful countenance.

Her left arm is slightly outstretched, palm facing upwards,

            fingers pointing as if to say come.

Her right arm cradles her Son, reaching under his back,

            fingers splayed as she holds him to her.

Her plethora of robes are wrapped around her, laying softly,

            in astonishing drapes of marble fabric.

Her Son, fully grown, lies across her body, thin and long,

            one foot resting upon her robes.

His body has the marks of the crucifixion, on his side, hands, feet,

            among amazing detail of muscle, vein, and nerve.

His head is lying back as He looks away from her, for he is gone,

    now safe from all the turmoil.

 

Tell me, do you recollect those final days on this earth,

            and the storms that raged at Golgatha?

 

His right arm hangs against her robes, as if life pours out of it,

            the contrast of hard lines and soft love.

His chest and ribs, strikingly realistic, substantiate his pose,

            his body both graceful and lifeless.

He has layers of soft lightly curled hair 'round his marbled face,

            marking again the distinction of hard and soft.

His mid-section is covered by a thin scarf, like an afterthought,

            in otherwise naked repose, as he was born.                                

His expression is gentle and peaceful, for he has gone to God,

            abandoning this life, this mother.

They are of Carrera, captured in marble and perfectly formed,

            astoundingly composed from a single stone.

They are Michelangelo’s vision breathed to life, perfection devine,

    in the heart of the very dome, touched by the artist.

 

Tell me, do you hear the weeping of the multitudes who visit,

            passing by as they gaze in wonder at your glory?

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

Oh La Pieta, you are the dream concrete of a young Florentine artist,

    how your beauty, highly finished, foretells his astounding future,

    and sets forth an inspiration for the masses, which transcends all time.

Copywrite©2012

All rights reserved.

Barbara L. Brown

 

Author's Note

The Pieta...Michelangelo’s only signed work of art, is of such impossible grandeur, the ideals of classical beauty during the Renaissance, born during a time of great art. This is set in the most natural of poses, cradling of mother to child, as Michelangelo, Il Divino, released them from their marble prison.

Michelangelo, arguably the worlds greatest artist when his works are examined in breadth and depth, was a sculptor, painter, architect, and poet. But his greatest love, for his 88 years of life, was sculpture. La Pieta is one of his greatest gifts to this world, created in 1498-1499. The structure is uniquely pyramidal, with the vertex at Mary's head, and widening to her robes at the bottom.

It is so inspiring in its execution, this single stone, that one must ask themselves, how can there not be a God, for it was God who inspired the artist to such impossibly lofty heights.

I'm not a very religious person, but it is art such as this that makes it very hard to believe that there is not something greater beyond. Push aside Science for now, because it cannot explain this art. How could a simple young man from Florence, a disappointing son of his local politician father of no means, with no artists in his ancestry, create such transcendent beauty at 23?

It is a startling precedent to Michelangelo's and Renaissance Art's many Madonna and Child renderings, setting an unreachable bar for lesser artists that came along. With The David sculpture, the Dome of St. Peter, and the Sistine Chapel paintings, The Pieta is among this inspired artist's very best works. For more information on La Pieta, visit:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Piet%C3%A0_(Michelangelo)

Reviews

[Emerald Seas]

Barbara,
Your skill and art never cease to amaze me. Every piece you write is written with such thought and care. This is an astounding tribute to the art, the artisan, and the subject matter.