{"product_id":"the-sistine-chapel-a-new-vision","title":"The Sistine Chapel: A New Vision","description":"\u003cp\u003eThe frescoes of the Sistine Chapel are often viewed as a striking study in the contrast between the middle and High Renaissance styles. On the one hand  the scenes painted on the chapels walls by Botticelli  Ghirlandaio  Perugino  Rosselli  and Signorelli (1481-82)  which depict parallel events in the lives of Moses and Jesus (and allegorically legitimize the power of the pope)  exemplify the narrative art developed in quattrocento Florence  in which multiple incidents and numerous draped figures are depicted in a single view. On the other hand  Michelangelos scenes from Genesis on the chapels ceiling (1508-12) epitomize the art of the High Renaissance  with its emphasis on compositional clarity and the human form  and his immense Last Judgment on the chapelGs altar wall (1536-41) even anticipates Mannerism  which pushed the expressive power of the nude hypertrophied and elaborately posed to its limit. In this boldly original book  sure to inspire lively discussion among all students and enthusiasts of art history  noted scholar Heinrich Pfeiffer reveals that  despite their stylistic diversity  the frescoes of the Sistine Chapel display an iconographic unity of hitherto-unsuspected depth. Drawing on years of research  he argues that neither the frescoes of the quattrocento masters nor even those of Michelangelo are free artistic embellishments on the prescribed themes; rather  their every detail has a specific symbolic meaning that is to be discovered only in the texts available to contemporary papal theologians. As a whole  he asserts  this symbolism constitutes a single iconographic program that underlies (without supplanting) the frescoes more obvious thematic and allegorical meanings  and that expresses metaphorically a number of key theological concepts  such as the Trinity and the analogy of Christ and His Church to groom and bride. With his clearly reasoned text  Pfeiffer leads us to a new understanding of the Sistine Chapel as a collaborative creation  encompassing not only the agony and the ecstasy of Michelangelo and his artistic forebears but also the faith and erudition of the theologians who closely advised them. He inspires us to take a fresh look at this great monument  the entirety of which is illustrated here in stunning full- and double-page photographs that faithfully reproduce the brilliant colors revealed by the frescoes recent restoration. Just as significantly  he reminds us of the importance of iconography to the full appreciation of art  and of the close links that so often exist between text and image.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"My Store","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":44949292548149,"sku":"ByrdShop_0789209349","price":227.81,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0627\/8139\/0901\/files\/9780789209344_0fd02594-e047-41bb-8db1-95d800f6a8b9.jpg?v=1772666645","url":"https:\/\/atxbooks.com\/products\/the-sistine-chapel-a-new-vision","provider":"ATX Books","version":"1.0","type":"link"}