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Michelangelo, God's Architect: The Story of His Final Years and Greatest Masterpiece
The untold story of Michelangelo's final decades--and his transformation into one of the greatest architects of the Italian Renaissance
As he entered his seventies, the great Italian Renaissance artist Michelangelo despaired that his productive years were past. Anguished by the death of friends and discouraged by the loss of commissions to younger artists, this supreme painter and sculptor began carving his own tomb. It was at this unlikely moment that fate intervened to task Michelangelo with the most ambitious and daunting project of his long creative life.
Michelangelo, God's Architect is the first book to tell the full story of Michelangelo's final two decades, when the peerless artist refashioned himself into the master architect of St. Peter's Basilica and other major buildings. When the Pope handed Michelangelo control of the St. Peter's project in 1546, it was a study in architectural mismanagement, plagued by flawed design and faulty engineering. Assessing the situation with his uncompromising eye and razor-sharp intellect, Michelangelo overcame the furious resistance of Church officials to persuade the Pope that it was time to start over.
In this richly illustrated book, leading Michelangelo expert William Wallace sheds new light on this least familiar part of Michelangelo's biography, revealing a creative genius who was also a skilled engineer and enterprising businessman. The challenge of building St. Peter's deepened Michelangelo's faith, Wallace shows. Fighting the intrigues of Church politics and his own declining health, Michelangelo became convinced that he was destined to build the largest and most magnificent church ever conceived. And he was determined to live long enough that no other architect could alter his design.
As he entered his seventies, the great Italian Renaissance artist Michelangelo despaired that his productive years were past. Anguished by the death of friends and discouraged by the loss of commissions to younger artists, this supreme painter and sculptor began carving his own tomb. It was at this unlikely moment that fate intervened to task Michelangelo with the most ambitious and daunting project of his long creative life.
Michelangelo, God's Architect is the first book to tell the full story of Michelangelo's final two decades, when the peerless artist refashioned himself into the master architect of St. Peter's Basilica and other major buildings. When the Pope handed Michelangelo control of the St. Peter's project in 1546, it was a study in architectural mismanagement, plagued by flawed design and faulty engineering. Assessing the situation with his uncompromising eye and razor-sharp intellect, Michelangelo overcame the furious resistance of Church officials to persuade the Pope that it was time to start over.
In this richly illustrated book, leading Michelangelo expert William Wallace sheds new light on this least familiar part of Michelangelo's biography, revealing a creative genius who was also a skilled engineer and enterprising businessman. The challenge of building St. Peter's deepened Michelangelo's faith, Wallace shows. Fighting the intrigues of Church politics and his own declining health, Michelangelo became convinced that he was destined to build the largest and most magnificent church ever conceived. And he was determined to live long enough that no other architect could alter his design.
278 pages, Hardcover
First published October 15, 2019
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535 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 42 reviews
November 25, 2019
I read EVERYTHING I can find on Michelangelo (of course; I write whole novels about him, how could I not?), and I briefly studied under Dr. Wallace at Wash U, so I pre-ordered this book and waited impatiently for it to arrive at my doorstep. However, I did NOT expect to love it quite as much as I did.
I finished it in two days (my first time through it; I will no doubt re-read this one multiple times in my life), and was struck by this brilliant, empathetic exploration into the life of Michelangelo AND how aging affects the creative process. It's rare that a book opens up Michelangelo in a brand new way for me, but this one provided such fresh insights that I was periodically left breathless. It made me think about how the body makes creation more difficult as you age -- especially for a marble sculptor, frescoist, and architect, all very physical activities -- but also how getting closer and closer to death changes perspective on life, work, art... Michelangelo lived with sculptures that he couldn't finish in the same way he had in his youth; he dedicated the end of his life to building a church (St. Peter's) that he would never see completed; he lost friends and family, but still had to find a way to persevere with patience... patience...
I try hard in my own own writing to take great artists off of their pedestals and present them as real human beings struggling with the same problems as the rest of us... Not as divine geniuses with special powers that mere mortals can't touch, but as real men and women overcoming obstacles to achieve greatness... By highlighting their humanity, I see their accomplishments as all the more impressive.
This book -- by one of the most important Michelangelo scholars of our times -- will stand for me as an example of how to achieve that goal: making Michelangelo human while celebrating his incomparable contributions to our culture and making us all feel a little less alone in our journey through this thing called life.
This book is for Michelangelo lovers, those interested in the creative process, or anyone thinking about what it means to age.
I finished it in two days (my first time through it; I will no doubt re-read this one multiple times in my life), and was struck by this brilliant, empathetic exploration into the life of Michelangelo AND how aging affects the creative process. It's rare that a book opens up Michelangelo in a brand new way for me, but this one provided such fresh insights that I was periodically left breathless. It made me think about how the body makes creation more difficult as you age -- especially for a marble sculptor, frescoist, and architect, all very physical activities -- but also how getting closer and closer to death changes perspective on life, work, art... Michelangelo lived with sculptures that he couldn't finish in the same way he had in his youth; he dedicated the end of his life to building a church (St. Peter's) that he would never see completed; he lost friends and family, but still had to find a way to persevere with patience... patience...
I try hard in my own own writing to take great artists off of their pedestals and present them as real human beings struggling with the same problems as the rest of us... Not as divine geniuses with special powers that mere mortals can't touch, but as real men and women overcoming obstacles to achieve greatness... By highlighting their humanity, I see their accomplishments as all the more impressive.
This book -- by one of the most important Michelangelo scholars of our times -- will stand for me as an example of how to achieve that goal: making Michelangelo human while celebrating his incomparable contributions to our culture and making us all feel a little less alone in our journey through this thing called life.
This book is for Michelangelo lovers, those interested in the creative process, or anyone thinking about what it means to age.
April 16, 2022
Michelangelo, God's Architect, The Story of His Final Years and Greatest Masterpiece was a delightful surprise as well as a reflection on the power of creative work to overcome the obstacles encountered during one’s last years.
If you think you know the great artist, Michelangelo, his works and struggles, you are probably in for a few surprises as I was. Most people (I would surmise) think of his sumptuous Pietà or his colossus David, both completed before he was 30, or the ceiling in the Sistine Chapel or the Last Judgement, though he did not have a high opinion of painting. Few probably realize—myself among them—his crucial and indeed salvific role as chief architect on St. Peter’s Cathedral. Had the job not been added to his surfeit of other papal mandates, both the artist and the cathedral would certainly have been the poorer. Indeed, St. Peters might not have been completed at all, or anyway, not in anything like its current splendor.
The many problems besetting St. Peter’s challenged even Il Divino (“the divine one”) as Michelangelo was already called during his lifetime but they also gave him reason to live in spite of wave after wave of setbacks, personal losses and existential questions which tormented him during those last years. Almost every close friend he had, died as did almost all of the young persons born into the Buonarroti family during that time, infant and child mortality being what it was in those days.
Michelangelo had always lived an abstemious life, just a notch above a hermit. He had few friends, but those he had, he treasured like family, even more than family. He worked long hours and took little interest in what he ate on his own, but in his later years loved to have good foods and wines sent from his native Florence by his brother’s son, Lionardo Buonarroti, to share with those dear to him. The artist’s lifelong devotion to his Catholic faith became critical in old age when he saw so much of his life, as wasted time and wondered/worried if God was pleased with him. He looked around at the many unfinished works and realized most of them would never be finished by him, including St. Peters.
Michelangelo navigated the rough political waters of numerous Popes beginning with Paul III (1534-49), Julius III (1550-55), Marcellus II (1555), Paul IV (1555-59) and he died during the pontificate of Pius IV (1559-65). During each anxious interregnum, he stayed away to wait out his own status under the new administration. Would his services still be required? It seems humorous from this vantage point to even ask the question, who wouldn’t want to have the great artist on their staff? But I suppose it says a lot about the artist’s humility ... and more than a little about the popes?
These are just a few of my reflections. I had many more as I was listening to the audio version (from Chirp) which I highly recommend and got on sale. If you are approaching your twilight years and especially if you are an artist or an art aficionado, this book is a treasure to read.
February 2022: Initial thoughts: I never knew that Michelangelo had such a big impact on St. Peter's Basilica! And basically it is also what kept him alive in his final years, gave him a reason to live, after he thought his life was over, when he had lost his two best friends, an important patron, several other people dear to him and all these people so much younger than him!!! He went on to work on the basilica for another 17 years at the request of Paul III. If he hadn't taken over the task, which he did not want to do, the plans of the previous architect called for the tearing down of the Sistine Chapel to accommodate the outrageous expansion he had added on to the original architect's design.
If you think you know the great artist, Michelangelo, his works and struggles, you are probably in for a few surprises as I was. Most people (I would surmise) think of his sumptuous Pietà or his colossus David, both completed before he was 30, or the ceiling in the Sistine Chapel or the Last Judgement, though he did not have a high opinion of painting. Few probably realize—myself among them—his crucial and indeed salvific role as chief architect on St. Peter’s Cathedral. Had the job not been added to his surfeit of other papal mandates, both the artist and the cathedral would certainly have been the poorer. Indeed, St. Peters might not have been completed at all, or anyway, not in anything like its current splendor.
The many problems besetting St. Peter’s challenged even Il Divino (“the divine one”) as Michelangelo was already called during his lifetime but they also gave him reason to live in spite of wave after wave of setbacks, personal losses and existential questions which tormented him during those last years. Almost every close friend he had, died as did almost all of the young persons born into the Buonarroti family during that time, infant and child mortality being what it was in those days.
Michelangelo had always lived an abstemious life, just a notch above a hermit. He had few friends, but those he had, he treasured like family, even more than family. He worked long hours and took little interest in what he ate on his own, but in his later years loved to have good foods and wines sent from his native Florence by his brother’s son, Lionardo Buonarroti, to share with those dear to him. The artist’s lifelong devotion to his Catholic faith became critical in old age when he saw so much of his life, as wasted time and wondered/worried if God was pleased with him. He looked around at the many unfinished works and realized most of them would never be finished by him, including St. Peters.
Michelangelo navigated the rough political waters of numerous Popes beginning with Paul III (1534-49), Julius III (1550-55), Marcellus II (1555), Paul IV (1555-59) and he died during the pontificate of Pius IV (1559-65). During each anxious interregnum, he stayed away to wait out his own status under the new administration. Would his services still be required? It seems humorous from this vantage point to even ask the question, who wouldn’t want to have the great artist on their staff? But I suppose it says a lot about the artist’s humility ... and more than a little about the popes?
These are just a few of my reflections. I had many more as I was listening to the audio version (from Chirp) which I highly recommend and got on sale. If you are approaching your twilight years and especially if you are an artist or an art aficionado, this book is a treasure to read.
February 2022: Initial thoughts: I never knew that Michelangelo had such a big impact on St. Peter's Basilica! And basically it is also what kept him alive in his final years, gave him a reason to live, after he thought his life was over, when he had lost his two best friends, an important patron, several other people dear to him and all these people so much younger than him!!! He went on to work on the basilica for another 17 years at the request of Paul III. If he hadn't taken over the task, which he did not want to do, the plans of the previous architect called for the tearing down of the Sistine Chapel to accommodate the outrageous expansion he had added on to the original architect's design.
May 26, 2024
In 1546, Michelangelo was a seventy-year-old man living when the average lifespan was well below fifty. He had an entire lifetime’s worth of work to look back on and a reputation he knew would outlive him. He completed the Pieta before age twenty-five and the David before he was thirty. At an age where most of us – even today – would have rested on our laurels, he chose to accept his new papal commission and become the principal architect at St. Peter’s Basilica. With his preternatural abilities still very much intact, he took up his work. William Wallace’s book (Princeton University Press, 2019) is the short, highly readable, and poignant story of the two decades Michelangelo spent working on his last major project.
The first few chapters of the book discuss the projects Michelangelo was finishing up when the Pope summoned him to St. Peter’s, including the Palazzo Farnese and putting the last touches on the tomb of Julius II while the last five chapters focus on construction at St. Peter’s. In 1505, Pope Julius II decided that the Old St. Peter’s which had served Rome for over a millennium should be torn down and rebuilt from the ground up. The first architect assigned to the project was Bramante, but progress suffered from a series of uneven fits and starts for forty years until Michelangelo finally took on the job in 1546.
The problems he faced there were staggeringly complex, even for someone half his age. One of the former architects, Antonio da Sangallo, had an ardent group of loyalists who continued to advocate for his design which Michelangelo knew would result in total failure. The people working under him, despite their best intentions, couldn’t reconcile themselves to Michelangelo’s new plans. But slowly - very slowly - he made inroads and started to change minds. Michelangelo was nothing if not a studious micromanager: “he selected and inspected all his materials; arranged for ropes, tackle, and boats; haggled with carters and shippers about fees; and made drawings for even the tiniest, seemingly most insignificant details, before turning the paper over to make calculations, count bushels of grain, draft a letter, and compose poetry.” What makes Michelangelo’s acceptance of this gargantuan project even more touching is that he knew he would never live to see it finished. Despite pouring nearly two decades of his life into it and dying just a few weeks short of his 89th birthday in 1564, the new St. Peter’s wouldn’t be completed until 1626, over sixty years after he died.
Wallace does a wonderful job of focusing on Michelangelo’s assistants and relatives, drawing heavily from the large amount of correspondence he left behind. In doing so, Wallace does severe damage to Giorgio Vasari’s insinuations that Michelangelo was a quiet, brooding misanthrope. His voluminous correspondence shows him to be caring, warm, and downright diplomatic in his dealings with other artisans, friends, and members of his household.
Wallace still holds on to the Romantic notion of the artistic genius, which is unnecessary but nevertheless so thoroughly embedded in popular writing about the “Great Artists,” visual and otherwise. Wallace has done his homework and harnessed his scholarly resources; he doesn’t need to lean on the idea of genius. Understanding and appreciating the tremendous amount of work that went into St. Peter’s is not to diminish the immensity of the achievement. But this is a minor point in an overall stupendously good book. As someone whose art-historical knowledge is – let’s be euphemistic and say “aspirational” at best – I can’t imagine a better introduction to Michelangelo’s late life and work. To think that Princeton University Press is making books like this – smart, scholarly, and yet still accessible to the interested layperson – should excite everyone who takes ideas and history seriously.
The first few chapters of the book discuss the projects Michelangelo was finishing up when the Pope summoned him to St. Peter’s, including the Palazzo Farnese and putting the last touches on the tomb of Julius II while the last five chapters focus on construction at St. Peter’s. In 1505, Pope Julius II decided that the Old St. Peter’s which had served Rome for over a millennium should be torn down and rebuilt from the ground up. The first architect assigned to the project was Bramante, but progress suffered from a series of uneven fits and starts for forty years until Michelangelo finally took on the job in 1546.
The problems he faced there were staggeringly complex, even for someone half his age. One of the former architects, Antonio da Sangallo, had an ardent group of loyalists who continued to advocate for his design which Michelangelo knew would result in total failure. The people working under him, despite their best intentions, couldn’t reconcile themselves to Michelangelo’s new plans. But slowly - very slowly - he made inroads and started to change minds. Michelangelo was nothing if not a studious micromanager: “he selected and inspected all his materials; arranged for ropes, tackle, and boats; haggled with carters and shippers about fees; and made drawings for even the tiniest, seemingly most insignificant details, before turning the paper over to make calculations, count bushels of grain, draft a letter, and compose poetry.” What makes Michelangelo’s acceptance of this gargantuan project even more touching is that he knew he would never live to see it finished. Despite pouring nearly two decades of his life into it and dying just a few weeks short of his 89th birthday in 1564, the new St. Peter’s wouldn’t be completed until 1626, over sixty years after he died.
Wallace does a wonderful job of focusing on Michelangelo’s assistants and relatives, drawing heavily from the large amount of correspondence he left behind. In doing so, Wallace does severe damage to Giorgio Vasari’s insinuations that Michelangelo was a quiet, brooding misanthrope. His voluminous correspondence shows him to be caring, warm, and downright diplomatic in his dealings with other artisans, friends, and members of his household.
Wallace still holds on to the Romantic notion of the artistic genius, which is unnecessary but nevertheless so thoroughly embedded in popular writing about the “Great Artists,” visual and otherwise. Wallace has done his homework and harnessed his scholarly resources; he doesn’t need to lean on the idea of genius. Understanding and appreciating the tremendous amount of work that went into St. Peter’s is not to diminish the immensity of the achievement. But this is a minor point in an overall stupendously good book. As someone whose art-historical knowledge is – let’s be euphemistic and say “aspirational” at best – I can’t imagine a better introduction to Michelangelo’s late life and work. To think that Princeton University Press is making books like this – smart, scholarly, and yet still accessible to the interested layperson – should excite everyone who takes ideas and history seriously.
May 11, 2022
Beautiful and poignant perspective on one of the greatest artists that has ever lived. It has made me see not only Michelangelo’s work in a new light, but I feel like I have lived and breathed with the man, understood him and his life - both the wonder and the sorrow. Although, it seems he had more sorrow - as he pretty much out lived every single person in his life (Spoiler alert) and all the Popes were dying like flies in his lifetime. Geez. I will definitely be contemplating his work differently and I think his unfinished statues are in some ways the most beautiful. I have more thoughts on that, but for a later time.
Anyway, Wallace did a fantastic job detailing the less talked about aspects of Michelangelo’s life giving us a rare insight into his very soul.
Anyway, Wallace did a fantastic job detailing the less talked about aspects of Michelangelo’s life giving us a rare insight into his very soul.
March 6, 2021
This book deals with Michelangelo’s productive last decade when he focused largely on the construction of Saint Peter’s, but he was involved in all sorts of other projects. Wallace is the author of a full scale biography of Michelangelo, but I think he felt he wanted to look at this aspect of the life in some detail. And the details he provides are rather interesting, Wallace understands the particulars of building construction during the 16th century and building anything like St Peter’s or any of the other projects were full time jobs as even the best architect did not know how stone might respond and what sort of on the fly revisions might be necessary. The original piers to support the dome of St Peter’s, designed by Bramante, cracked and subsequent architects including Michelangelo had to address this issue, among others, usually on the fly. Besides telling a fascinating story, the book is extremely well written with an authoritative portrait by someone clearly at the top of his game.
December 15, 2021
A delightful journey through his closing years and a work that both drew on his past talents and elicited new skills to overcome formidable technical (not to mention, political) challenges. The book covers territory that is a combination of history and art (architecture). I was left in awe, once again, of the intellect and diverse genius of the man.
February 2, 2024
An absolutely endearing biography of the last 20 years of the life of arguably the greatest creative genius of the Western World. Most of us think of Michelangelo as the young author of the world's most celebrated works of art: the Rome Pieta, Bacchus, the David and the Sistine Chapel ceiling. But as Wallace convincingly shows, Michelangelo's greatest (and most daunting) achievement was accomplished in his old age: the design and construction of the New St. Peter's Basilica to which he devoted "more time, effort and expertise...than to any other project of his career." As you read Wallace's superb account, you understand the intimate spirituality that underlaid Michelangelo's unwavering commitment to St. Peter's. As he grew old and his closest friends and family died off, as his desire to return to his native Florence to die grew strong, and as his body began to fail, the building of St. Peter's was Michelangelo's final sacrifice of penance and praise to the God and Church to whom he was firmly devoted.
June 13, 2025
The task to finish Bramante's design of the long awaited Saint Peters church, which remained embarrassingly unfinished, was yet to be fulfilled. Who would commit to the daring task of bringing the unrealized concept into full consummation? Michelangelo, notably one of the greatest artist of the Renaissance, was thoroughly convinced that he was not the appropriate, nor qualified individual to fulfill such a grandiose task. Nevertheless, Pope Paul III continued to conclude that Michelangelo was the only one fit for the job, regardless of the artist's many excuses. Before he knew it, he was elected as the principal architect for the building of St. Peter's; a job that would require every ounce of energy and effort from the aged artist. Though exhausted and in the evening of his life, Michelangelo recognized this to be one of his last, and perhaps most significant works-- a work he would soon consider as having been divinely assigned to him, ordained by God Himself.
August 10, 2022
First I’ve read anything about Michelangelo. This was the last part of his life so I’m still pretty clueless about the first 2/3 of his life. If I had a critique and a reason for the four star rating rather than five, it’s the repetition of his proximity to death. We get it, he’s already old at the start of the book and gets older and back in the 16th century, people didn’t live as long as he lived … aside from that, crazy informative. Despite having no art history background, I stayed engaged.
June 7, 2021
What a great non-fiction book about the final years of the great artist, Michelangelo. The author had a great deal of cultural analysis of especially the construction of St. Peter's Cathedral while Michelangelo was still alive, yet the author provided just the right amount of technical detail so that I never felt overwhelmed, nor did I felt the narrative strayed too far from the focus of the artist and his life.
A great read!
A great read!
February 19, 2023
Trochę zagmatwane ale essa
March 30, 2022
Fascinating story of the end of Michaelangelo’s life as he transitioned from an artist/sculpturer to an architect at the age of 75 to 87. A life long lived.
August 17, 2020
So interesting!! I learned a lot about Michaelangelo that I didn't know, even being an art major.
November 1, 2020
Easily one of the most accessible biographical art history books I've read. Wallace does not spend an excess amount of time with historical details, but instead gives a close personal look at the daily life of the 70+ year old artist. You learn about Michelangelo's business savvy intellect, his role as a director/designer/engineer, among other titles. Most of the time Wallace follows a chronological course, but occasionally jumps backwards and forwards in time. This can be disruptive, but he steers back on course promptly so it didn't bother me too much. Despite Michelangelo's limitations as an elderly artist, the last two decades of his life left a monumental legacy rivaling his previous works.
July 12, 2020
This book is aimed at a general readership. It makes a good case for the importance of Michelangelo's last years, and for the persistence of his ideas in the many architectural/urban works he left unfinished at his death, and which were completed by others. It is refreshing to see so much attention paid to the sheer physicality of building work, and the book is very good in describing how the borderline trial-and-error of construction worked to modify the initial "paper design", and how important trusted subordinates were to carrying out the work. A major failing is the author's shaky command of architectural terminology; a lesser one the repetitions which an editor should have ironed out.
February 2, 2020
Michelangelo, God’s Architect: The Story of His Later Years and Greatest Materpiece provides a unique and fascinating perspective of one of the most famous artists to ever live. Rather than focus on the earlier period of his life (or his whole life), which is widely documented by other authors, William Wallace focuses on the later years of his life. Wallace specifically focuses on 1545 onwards, which for Michelangelo (1475 - 1564) represents the last 25 years of his life.
Today, the last 25 years of someone’s life, especially when they range from 64 to 89 years old, likely mean retirement, relaxation, and spending time with friends and family. This is not the case for the genius who is Michelangelo. In the last years of his life, Michelangelo is able to solidify his legacy by designing and executing the building of the most famous church in the world, The Basilica of St. Peter’s. The incredible amount of adversity he perseveres through is breathtaking and you learn to appreciate his genius and determination.
In his the last 25 years of his life Michelangelo is the lead architect of a St. Peter’s and he takes on the herculean responsibility knowing that he will never see the completion of what Wallace considers his greatest achievement. In his earlier years Michelangelo, the master sculptor and painter, executed his works in a remarkably short period of time utilizing a hyper-focused skill set, painting or sculpting. Obviously, there were other skills he used but it was predominantly painting and sculpting for these works. However, his possibly greatest test, St. Peter’s, required more. It required a man whose life experience surprisingly prepared him for what what would be his most difficult test. Michelangelo needed to use his vast and diverse skill set to succeed in overseeing the build of the largest church in the world.
The whole time while he is designing and executing this monumental task, Michelangelo is actively working on other sculptures, drawings, frescoes, and poems. It makes you ponder how someone of his age could work on so much at one time. A man, who throughout his 70s and 80s, actively working on more projects than most people would attempt in a lifetime. Sadly, this period of time also consisted of melancholy, frustration, and sadness for Michelangelo. In the 1500s, having lived so long, Michelangelo was inevitably going to experience the death of many of his friends and family. While some deaths were more significant than others, such as the death of Urbino which devastated him, it reminded Michelangelo of the fragility of life. He began to contemplate the futility of his art and how in the end of everyone must die. Today, we see Michelangelo as a master artist who created transcendent works of art. Michelangelo saw in the mirror an artist approaching his death whose legacy is filled of disappointing works because of their shrunk scope compared to his initial design or their outright lack of completion. He felt this intense feeling of disappointment knowing St. Peter’s, which consumes most of his time, has zero chance of being completed before he dies. The perseverance Michelangelo displayed to continue in building the basilica at his age and in his state of mind is inspiring.
Wallace tells a striking picture of someone coming to grips with their legacy, thinking it is essentially complete, not realizing that their crowning achievement is not yet done. A man who actively works on a building, which torments him in some ways, not knowing that it will be one of his most admired works. As the reader you are led to appreciate a less understood aspect of his personality and genius: his diverse skill set and perseverance. Ultimately, Michelangelo’s greatest achievement (it may be argued) required his most diverse skill set, trust in those around him, and would be unfinished before he died. And his unwarranted disappointment in his other works would provide the fuel he needed to be the lead architect of his crown jewel.
Today, the last 25 years of someone’s life, especially when they range from 64 to 89 years old, likely mean retirement, relaxation, and spending time with friends and family. This is not the case for the genius who is Michelangelo. In the last years of his life, Michelangelo is able to solidify his legacy by designing and executing the building of the most famous church in the world, The Basilica of St. Peter’s. The incredible amount of adversity he perseveres through is breathtaking and you learn to appreciate his genius and determination.
In his the last 25 years of his life Michelangelo is the lead architect of a St. Peter’s and he takes on the herculean responsibility knowing that he will never see the completion of what Wallace considers his greatest achievement. In his earlier years Michelangelo, the master sculptor and painter, executed his works in a remarkably short period of time utilizing a hyper-focused skill set, painting or sculpting. Obviously, there were other skills he used but it was predominantly painting and sculpting for these works. However, his possibly greatest test, St. Peter’s, required more. It required a man whose life experience surprisingly prepared him for what what would be his most difficult test. Michelangelo needed to use his vast and diverse skill set to succeed in overseeing the build of the largest church in the world.
The whole time while he is designing and executing this monumental task, Michelangelo is actively working on other sculptures, drawings, frescoes, and poems. It makes you ponder how someone of his age could work on so much at one time. A man, who throughout his 70s and 80s, actively working on more projects than most people would attempt in a lifetime. Sadly, this period of time also consisted of melancholy, frustration, and sadness for Michelangelo. In the 1500s, having lived so long, Michelangelo was inevitably going to experience the death of many of his friends and family. While some deaths were more significant than others, such as the death of Urbino which devastated him, it reminded Michelangelo of the fragility of life. He began to contemplate the futility of his art and how in the end of everyone must die. Today, we see Michelangelo as a master artist who created transcendent works of art. Michelangelo saw in the mirror an artist approaching his death whose legacy is filled of disappointing works because of their shrunk scope compared to his initial design or their outright lack of completion. He felt this intense feeling of disappointment knowing St. Peter’s, which consumes most of his time, has zero chance of being completed before he dies. The perseverance Michelangelo displayed to continue in building the basilica at his age and in his state of mind is inspiring.
Wallace tells a striking picture of someone coming to grips with their legacy, thinking it is essentially complete, not realizing that their crowning achievement is not yet done. A man who actively works on a building, which torments him in some ways, not knowing that it will be one of his most admired works. As the reader you are led to appreciate a less understood aspect of his personality and genius: his diverse skill set and perseverance. Ultimately, Michelangelo’s greatest achievement (it may be argued) required his most diverse skill set, trust in those around him, and would be unfinished before he died. And his unwarranted disappointment in his other works would provide the fuel he needed to be the lead architect of his crown jewel.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
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June 8, 2025This book was a very mixed bag, an account of the final 20 or so years in the life of Michelangelo. Apparently, author William E. Wallace decided he disagreed with those who think the first half of the artist's life was the best & most productive, artistically. Sure, there's the Pieta (actually, he create 4, two in the last 20 years, although far from the similar perfection of the best known) and the Sistine Chapel, but who's counting?
Seriously, the author believes that Michelangelo's greater legacy is the number of buildings he began in the last 20 years. First and foremost, St. Peter's Basilica. This, despite the fact that none, NONE, of the buildings he began that late were completed by the time he died. His premise is that Michelangelo contributed so very much to the plans, designs and actual set-up for the work, that he gets the credit. Generally speaking, the world agrees, btw.
Once his name was assigned as architect, it ever after became "his" work, regardless of how far along he progressed in each assignment. Looking at the most important, St. Pete's, it's amazing to realize that he took over the project when he was in his 70s, had to dismantle plenty of his predecessor's work and actually only 12% of the finished product was finished while he lived. However, that 12% included creating the dome and it's framework, so that the plans, when completed, were pretty much his work, even if he wasn't "on site", let alone Planet Earth.
The down part of the book was what i considered padding. We walk day-by-day for one week, several times in the book. It seemed like padding--he stopped at a bar; he walked by a work he began; he took off his boots and slid into at-home shoes.
Flip side, a reader got an excellent sense of all the tasks an architect must consider. Four pages of details, such as making sure the donkeys are fed, fresh water for the workers, pay for each class of worker, plans for equipment, etc. etc. etc. But, there were many things i wouldn't have considered, so there we are.
I really appreciated the details of how some parts of the cathedral were created. Particularly fascinating was using internal helical ramps, which had a gradual incline, permitting donkeys to transport building materials to the uppermost reaches of the construction. And lunch delivery for workers, as well. LOL
So, the book is worthwhile, particularly given my pleasure in reading about architecture. However, i wouldn't use it for my First Bio of this man. Still, i learned plenty about the man himself, his reliance on his household, his friends and his old age.
Seriously, the author believes that Michelangelo's greater legacy is the number of buildings he began in the last 20 years. First and foremost, St. Peter's Basilica. This, despite the fact that none, NONE, of the buildings he began that late were completed by the time he died. His premise is that Michelangelo contributed so very much to the plans, designs and actual set-up for the work, that he gets the credit. Generally speaking, the world agrees, btw.
Once his name was assigned as architect, it ever after became "his" work, regardless of how far along he progressed in each assignment. Looking at the most important, St. Pete's, it's amazing to realize that he took over the project when he was in his 70s, had to dismantle plenty of his predecessor's work and actually only 12% of the finished product was finished while he lived. However, that 12% included creating the dome and it's framework, so that the plans, when completed, were pretty much his work, even if he wasn't "on site", let alone Planet Earth.
The down part of the book was what i considered padding. We walk day-by-day for one week, several times in the book. It seemed like padding--he stopped at a bar; he walked by a work he began; he took off his boots and slid into at-home shoes.
Flip side, a reader got an excellent sense of all the tasks an architect must consider. Four pages of details, such as making sure the donkeys are fed, fresh water for the workers, pay for each class of worker, plans for equipment, etc. etc. etc. But, there were many things i wouldn't have considered, so there we are.
I really appreciated the details of how some parts of the cathedral were created. Particularly fascinating was using internal helical ramps, which had a gradual incline, permitting donkeys to transport building materials to the uppermost reaches of the construction. And lunch delivery for workers, as well. LOL
So, the book is worthwhile, particularly given my pleasure in reading about architecture. However, i wouldn't use it for my First Bio of this man. Still, i learned plenty about the man himself, his reliance on his household, his friends and his old age.
May 19, 2025
This is a beautiful book that has been painstakingly researched and written. William E. Wallace paints an inspiring and detailed portrait of one of the greatest artists and his greatest work. His detailed research on Michelangelo's personal life and family and his work for five popes over the course of 17 years is insightful and rich. He pulls from letters Michelangelo wrote to family members and others - a real testament to the value of archives and primary sources. You will appreciate St. Peter's Basilica as Michelangelo's masterpiece in a more nuanced manner having learned of the obstacles he faced and his own doubts about taking on the project. The fact that Michelangelo lived to the age of 88 in a time when most died before 50 and that he tackled his greatest work in the last two decades of his life will astonish you - Wallace is a wonderful writer who writes in detail and demonstrates an appreciation for his subject matter. I will be traveling to Rome in September and read this as preparation for my trip. This will make a visit to St. Peter's Basilica much more rewarding.
March 10, 2020
I found the story of a great artist, his sculptural skill failing, his friends dying,and the end of his own life approaching, finding meaning in both renewed devotion to God and in trying to bring a monumental architectural vision to life, highly interesting. However, the dryness and the scattered non-linear quality of the telling kept me from becoming truly engrossed. From the frequent inclusions (and sometimes repetitions) of the original Italian of various quotations, followed by translation, followed by the author’s highly similar paraphrase, to the way certain aspects of Michelangelo’s work were harped on (the section on the use of paired columns in St. Peter’s in particular), to the self-congratulatory and entirely too long introduction (if I wasn’t listening on audiobook, I definitely would have skipped it), I got the impression the author’s foremost concern was establishing that only he, not any other authors or scholars, truly, truly understood Michelangelo.
July 6, 2021
Excellent biography covering Michelangelo's latter years, written by an expert on the artist and his work. The audiobook version, read by Simon Callow, was outstanding - when Michelangelo pens an angry letter, Mr. Callow lets you know just how angry the artist is.
I have no idea if Mr. Wallace is a person of religious faith, but he certainly understands that faith was profoundly important for Michelangelo, and its importance to the artist comes across clearly and movingly in this book. Just as clearly, we see Michelangelo's drive, ambition and frustrations and worries.
Michelangelo knew from the outset that he would not live to see Saint Peter's Basilica completed before his death. Above all, this is the story of Michelangelo's struggle and determination to see work on the Basilica progress to a point that later artists would not be able to reverse his work after his death.
I have no idea if Mr. Wallace is a person of religious faith, but he certainly understands that faith was profoundly important for Michelangelo, and its importance to the artist comes across clearly and movingly in this book. Just as clearly, we see Michelangelo's drive, ambition and frustrations and worries.
Michelangelo knew from the outset that he would not live to see Saint Peter's Basilica completed before his death. Above all, this is the story of Michelangelo's struggle and determination to see work on the Basilica progress to a point that later artists would not be able to reverse his work after his death.
March 10, 2022
Michael Angelos biographer highlights his amazing achievements during the last two decades of his life! I listened to it as an audio book, and was grateful for the expert Italian pronunciations provided by the reader ! Michael Angelos final years prove that old age does not have to mean a sentence of non-productivity. He was involved in many architectural and artistic commissions, the most important one being his taking over the oversight of the architecture and artistry of St Peter’s Basilica! Having watched my mother go through the painful loss of her memory due to Alzheimer’s disease … which led to her death at age 89, it was even more impressive that Michelangelo was still involved in the oversight of Saint Peters Basilica at the age of 89 … still walking or riding his horse to the work site when he could.
June 22, 2022
I distinctly remember first learning about Michelangelo in first-grade art class. My interest was sparked then and, up to now, I thought I had a decent grasp on his works and career. Apparently not. I missed out on the entire architecture career toward the end of his life. Needless to say, I learned a lot from this book.
While works like the Pieta and Sistine Chapel were mentioned as well as a later-in-life biography, the book mostly focuses on Michelangelo's work for various Popes and namely helping to design St. Peter's Basilica. Having taken this on at an advanced age, he of course didn't live to see its completion, however, it still stands today along with his several other famous works.
While works like the Pieta and Sistine Chapel were mentioned as well as a later-in-life biography, the book mostly focuses on Michelangelo's work for various Popes and namely helping to design St. Peter's Basilica. Having taken this on at an advanced age, he of course didn't live to see its completion, however, it still stands today along with his several other famous works.
December 11, 2019
This magnificent book about Michelangelo will astound and delight the senses and your artistic drive. Imagine being perpetually creative in your 70s and 80s as Michelangelo was.
I was drawn into this book, pausing only to breathe, as I learned more and more about this master artist and craftsman. I was especially intrigued after viewing Michelangelo's drawings at the Cleveland Museum of Art exhibition earlier this fall (2019).
The audio performance (not yet an edition on GR) was fantastic. Listen if you get the opportunity.
For a discussion of the audio performance, see AudioFile Magazine http://www.audiofilemagazine.com
I was drawn into this book, pausing only to breathe, as I learned more and more about this master artist and craftsman. I was especially intrigued after viewing Michelangelo's drawings at the Cleveland Museum of Art exhibition earlier this fall (2019).
The audio performance (not yet an edition on GR) was fantastic. Listen if you get the opportunity.
For a discussion of the audio performance, see AudioFile Magazine http://www.audiofilemagazine.com
May 11, 2023
I read another book a few years ago that centered around the painting of the Sistine chapel. This book focuses on the end of Michelangelo’s life. He lived well into his 80s, and he witnessed at least 15 popes during his tenure. Michelangelo was the pope’s chief architect and craftsman at the Vatican until his death. The book was quite specifically about the various people around him (and he suffered loneliness in his old age, but continued to be productive. There was a lot of esoteric information in the book and it was a little beyond me. Someone with expertise in Vatican history or art would probably live the book. It was well written and quite detailed.
December 27, 2020
Very readable, and yet filled with significant detail. After reading this book, I feel like I understand what challenges Michelangelo faced in his later years and how he addressed these, taking each in turn, letting his work evolve organically in response to issues as they arose. His later years, the architecture, fresco painting and sculpture were in each case high wire acts. This book gives me hope that with fierce determination, faith and good health, the later chapters of one's life can be full of purpose and worth.
June 12, 2021
William Wallace writes accurately, passionately, and inspiringly about my favorite artist. I highly recommend this biography that explores the last 20 years of the artist's life in such profound detail and respect. Understanding that Michelangelo was his most productive between the age of 70-89 with the work he did as chief architect on St. Peter's confounds many who believe his earlier works to be his masterpieces. Indeed they were, but the final work he did is of such massive import, that Wallace's argument is sound.
September 13, 2022
Inspiring story which revealed a side of the artist I hadn’t really considered before. But the book kind of stretches itself too long. During the middle I found myself waning, before things later kicked into gear with the main event. Simon Callow’s narration is excellent. Not just with vocal motivation and intonation, but also general pronunciation. It seems like he’s got a great grasp on the Italian language, based on the effortless way he breezes through names and words. Good stuff! [LIBRARY AUDIOBOOK]
いいインスピレーションけど話は長すぎるなります。素晴らしいナレーションだ。カロウ俳優は本当にイタリア語が話せるでしょう
いいインスピレーションけど話は長すぎるなります。素晴らしいナレーションだ。カロウ俳優は本当にイタリア語が話せるでしょう
March 11, 2020
If I could I would give it a 4.5. It is a very well written exploration of Michelangelo’s life after he finished all of the art that we traditionally attribute to him. He come across as very human and very resourceful when balancing his advancing age and the enormous demands placed on him redesigning St. Peter’s.
August 10, 2020
Fascinating account of Michelangelo in his 80s working hard at St. Peter's while knowing he'd never see it finished, along with being involved with other projects. For anyone who believes nothing can be accomplished later in life, this book disproves that theory. The author benefited from access to many of the great man's letters. One complaint: For me, there were too many minor names to follow
November 29, 2021
An eminently readable account of the loat 20 years of Michelangelo's life. A period during which he concentrated on the design of the new St Peter's Basilica which would not be finished until decades after his deat. This book shows that Michelangelo was far from being the character portrayed by Charlton Heston in "The Agony and the Ecstacy".
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