| The Agony and the Ecstasy, by Carol Reed, depicts | | | | paintings, it is a stretch to say that all of the |
| Michelangelo as being divinely inspired to create the | | | | iconology was intentional, and even more of a |
| Chapel. This is depicted in the movie in a scene | | | | stretch to say that the painting was planned with the |
| where Michelangelo is running away from Roman | | | | iconology in mind. |
| soldiers after he had abruptly halted working on the | | | | Both "The iconography of the Sistine Ceiling" and The |
| Chapel. In the scene, Michelangelo is hiding in the | | | | Agony and the Ecstasy have certain insights into |
| mountains near the stone quarry and his inspiration | | | | Michelangelo's approach to painting the Sistine Chapel |
| for the ceiling is divinely inspired. Michelangelo, while | | | | ceiling. It seems that the most logical explanation to |
| gazing into the sky, witnesses the clouds take the | | | | Michelangelo's inspiration comes as a combination of |
| formation of the scenes that eventually cover the | | | | both Reed and Bull's depictions. Michelangelo certainly |
| Sistine Chapel ceiling. This divine inspiration seems to | | | | utilized a great deal of iconology in his painting. This |
| be an obvious departure from factual history for the | | | | required a great depth of theological founding for the |
| sake of dramatic effect. It seems that Reed's | | | | chosen subject. This iconology would certainly lay |
| depiction of Michelangelo's inspiration being divine is in | | | | claims to Bull's beliefs. At the same time, a certain |
| many ways and insult to Michelangelo. Reed portrays | | | | amount of creative inspiration was needed on the |
| the scene where Michelangelo is inspired with very | | | | behalf of Michelangelo. |
| clear, articulate images within the clouds. This | | | | While the idea of that inspiration being divinely |
| depiction in many ways downplays the role or | | | | inspired may seem like a stretch, a separate |
| Michelangelo in the conception of the ideas that | | | | seemingly unrelated portion of The Agony and the |
| became his most famous work. | | | | Ecstasy may be relevant to Michelangelo's work on |
| "The Iconography of the Sistine Ceiling," brings the | | | | the chapel. This section of the movie is the part |
| inspiration of Michelangelo as something dramatically | | | | where Michelangelo receives a new piece of granite, |
| different then Reed's depiction. Malcomb Bull in many | | | | looks at the large stone for a while, and then |
| ways is looking at Michelangelo's work very narrowly. | | | | proclaims that it will be a statue of Moses. |
| He describes specific sections as having very specific | | | | Michelangelo sees it as freeing the figure within. This |
| meanings. It seems that while Reed stretches to | | | | part in many ways may have relevance towards |
| make Michelangelo's inspiration emotionally appealing, | | | | Michelangelo's inspiration when choosing the subject |
| Bull stretches to make it intellectually appealing. Bull | | | | matter of the ceiling. It is quite apparent that |
| leaves out any room for randomness. Many of the | | | | Michelangelo thought very philosophically about his art |
| connections throughout the various painted scenes | | | | work, and maybe for him, painting was simply |
| are surely inevitable, based on the fact that | | | | bringing to life an image that already existed; even if |
| Michelangelo painted all nine main scenes based all on | | | | only in his mind. While neither Bull nor Reed can fully |
| the same book: Genesis. Bull tries to place great | | | | satisfy how Michelangelo approached the painting of |
| significance on the placement of the individual | | | | the Sistine Ceiling, when combining the two depictions |
| paintings, however arguably, the paintings are placed | | | | they compliment each other in order to piece |
| in chronological order. While it is certainly apparent | | | | together a fairly adequate idea of Michelangelo's |
| that a great deal of iconology exists within the | | | | inspiration. |