Michelangelo Buonarroti (1475-1564) was recognized in his lifetime as the greatest
living artist, creator of a succession of masterpieces in sculpture, fresco painting, and architecture.

In all his work, Michelangelo impressed his contemporaries as a forceful personality, a divine genius endowed with terribilit, or intense emotional power.

Often portrayed as a solitary and austere figure, he in fact enjoyed a remarkable range of friendships, and those he loved and hated, served or resisted, are presented here, from his family and fellow artists to the popes, nobles, and rulers of Europe.