Very interesting video, thanks Liam! Michelangelo did create a perfectly balanced, symmetrical sculpture, not easy to do given the logistics of who was holding whom. But with essentially an optical illusion created by Mary's seated position, all the drapery of her clothes, and a skillfully executed proportional increase in her size, the pose appears natural and graceful. I read once that if Mary stood up, her height would be in the 7 to 9 foot range. It is Christ who is life-size, not Mary. The best description I ever read of her placid face is that it is the Renaissance equivalent of the Zen Buddhist ideal of calm acceptance of life's suffering.
Very interesting video, thanks Liam! Michelangelo did create a perfectly balanced, symmetrical sculpture, not easy to do given the logistics of who was holding whom. But with essentially an optical illusion created by Mary's seated position, all the drapery of her clothes, and a skillfully executed proportional increase in her size, the pose appears natural and graceful. I read once that if Mary stood up, her height would be in the 7 to 9 foot range. It is Christ who is life-size, not Mary. The best description I ever read of her placid face is that it is the Renaissance equivalent of the Zen Buddhist ideal of calm acceptance of life's suffering.
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