Michelangelo and the Art of Letter Writing

Deborah Parker examines Michelangelo's use of language in his correspondence as a means of understanding the creative process of this extraordinary artist.

Deborah Parker (Author)

9781107415263, Cambridge University Press

Paperback / softback, published 19 June 2014

190 pages, 23 b/w illus.
22.9 x 15.2 x 1.1 cm, 0.29 kg

'Offers perceptive and intriguing analyses of the style and handwriting used in Michelangelo's letters, and in some of his poems … interesting and persuasive.' Literary Review

Michelangelo's extant correspondence is the most abundant of any artist. Spanning 67 years, it comprises roughly 1,400 letters, of which 500 were written by Michelangelo himself. Biographers and art historians have combed the letters for insight into Michelangelo's views on art, his contractual obligations, and his relationships. Literary scholars have explored parallels between the letters and Michelangelo's poetry. Nevertheless, this is the first book to study the letters for their intrinsically literary qualities. In this volume, Deborah Parker examines Michelangelo's use of language as a means of understanding the creative process of this extraordinary artist. His letters often revel in witticisms, rhetorical flourishes, and linguistic ingenuity. Close study of his mastery of words and modes of self-presentation shows Michelangelo to be a consummate artist who deploys the resources of language to considerable effect.

Introduction
1. The role of letters in biographies of Michelangelo
2. From word to image: epistolary rhetoric and artistic form
3. From experience to expression: representations of captivity in Michelangelo's art, poetry, and letters
4. Michelangelo's words: saying, doing, meaning.

Subject Areas: Early modern history: c 1450/1500 to c 1700 [HBLH], European history [HBJD], Literary studies: fiction, novelists & prose writers [DSK], Literature & literary studies [D], Diaries, letters & journals [BJ]