New exhibition gives glimpse of Michelangelo's universe

Antonio de Vito, curator of the show. [Photo by Jiang Dong/China Daily]

"For Michelangelo, it was an easy job to create a comparison of light and shadow in his output," he says.

"That is why he was able to show such vivid faces in his sculptures and paintings. He conveyed the power of these figures, rather than simply focusing on sculpting or painting the outlines."

A studio has also been re-created at the exhibition to show how Michelangelo sculpted and painted. De Vito will demonstrate in the studio how a fresco was painted in 15th-century Italy.

"As an artist and scholar, I needed to understand his mind and how his hands worked.

"As I recreated these works I came to better understand how Michelangelo was different from other artists."

He adds that the exhibition also shows viewers the hardships Michelangelo faced when painting the Sistine Chapel ceiling.

"Doing a fresco like that is complicated because painters have to execute their work very quickly before the fresh plaster and the pigment mixed with water get dried.

"It became an even more difficult task for Michelangelo, because unlike many other artists of his time, he paid much attention to detail."

De Vito says Michelangelo worked with the same aim when doing sculptures and designing architectures. He says that when Michelangelo sculpted on a piece of marble, he wasn't guided by the whole picture. He started with the details.