The Sistine Chapel

We get to do all sorts of things these days. 

Yesterday it was a visit to the Sistine Chapel. Well it was a visit to a few of the panels of the ceiling, rendered onto canvas, illuminated and brought to Melbourne in an exhibition. 

Alice told me to come along. And being a Renaissance junkie, I couldn't say no. 

Of course, I've been to the actual Sistine Chapel some 23 years ago. Of my memories of Rome, I remember having raging bronchitis, I was staying in a one star rooming house near the Colusseum, I got hassled by gypsies and I spent my afternoons avoiding the heat listening to a troupe practice Don Giovanni for an opera festival at St Clement's Basilica - which was the highlight of the trip. 

Anyway, I remember going to the Vatican for the day, seeing La Pieta, being floored by the wealth of the place. And then I was in the Sistine Chapel with a couple of hundred other people, and I remember having a look and thinking that this would be an amazing place if you were on your own and there weren't people yelling at you not to take photos. It wasn't the best of experiences. 

So I relished the chance to have a look at this amazing little church and to view the paintings close up.

This was a lot more palatable than my Roman experience.

Alice and I first took in the three short documentaries about the painting and scaffolding processes. Fascinating stuff.

And then we got to see a lot of the frescoes up close. 

Incredible stuff. The detail, the humour, the outright sticking it to the Pope, the stories. It was surreal to be up close and personal with images you've only seen from 6 storeys away.

Like this: 

And this - I love the Sibyl of Cumae, but Michelangelo really doesn't know how to do tits. 

And this, the majestic altar piece.

And the bits that get overlooked - this one was my favourite. 

Alice, all the mean time, was going through the meaning of each panel. She was quizzing me on my knowledge of the bible and Hebrew (both stood up quite well). It was a lovely, meandering, fascinating afternoon. 

As with all exhibitions like there, there were a few too many people there, but still - the chance to see some beauty in a controlled environment. 

I'm glad I went along. 

After, I bought a fridge magnet to commemorate the afternoon and Alice and I went for a cup of tea, which is another ritual of ours. 

Unfortunately, Alice and I went on the last day of the exhibition. If this was not the case, I'd be telling you to buy a ticket and go have a look. It was worth the $30 ticket price.

Today's song: