That my black night doth make more clear the sun
Which at your birth was given to wait on you.
~Michelangelo
Philosopher by Michelangelo, c 1495-1500, pen and brown ink
Did you know that Michelangelo wrote sonnets? He wrote hundreds -- about love, art, death, his heroes, his patrons. Here are some examples from the 1904 edition of John Addington Symonds' translations of Michelangelo's sonnets:
Light and Darkness
The Model and the Statue
On Dante Alighieri
Ed at Think Kid Think has the Poetry Friday round-up this week.
Want to be part of the 2013 Summer Poem Swap? Email me or leave a comment with your email address.
San Petronio by Michelangelo, Basilica of Saint Dominic, Italy,
photo by Georges Jansoone
14 comments:
I am not surprised by his writing, but I didn't know, Tabatha. I love The Artist and His Work, and "Art's Free Energy". Just think, so long ago, and still we are tasting his work and loving every bite. Thank you!
I'm always learning something new and interesting here -- didn't know he wrote sonnets! I like "The Model and the Statue" the best. :)
P.S. Thanks for telling me about Uneek Doll Designs awhile ago. I enjoyed contacting Debbie and featuring her dolls at my blog this week.
I did not know he wrote sonnets either--thanks for broadening my understanding of renaissance man and introducing these.
Whow knew that he was a poet, too. And a skilled one at that...naturally. It's astonishing to realize just how many gifts were crammed into this one man, so that years and years later we can still be amazed at all he was capable of accomplishing.
Had no idea, but somehow I'm not surprised. Thank you for enlightening me and sharing samples of his beautiful work.
It looks like you've surprised everyone today, Tabatha!
I like this line, "In spite of time and death, those tyrants stern."
I meant to tell you I'd love to participate in the summer swap again this year! It was good to be challenged.
I had no idea he wrote sonnets -- what an amazing man. Can you imagine what it would feel like to find and translate something unexpected like this? Talk about a treasure! Thanks for sharing!
My favorite line is "that which is divine in us," referring to creativity. Perfect.
Thanks for sharing, Tabatha - I had no idea he was such a poet! Beautiful stuff.
I had no idea he wrote poetry. I love seeing the connections between his writing and his art.
Like everyone else, I had no idea Michaelangelo was a poet. Since so many of us didn't know this, I'm wondering how you discovered this.
Thanks, everyone, for your visits and comments. Carol, I wish I could tell you how I found out, but I'm not sure! I keep virtual folders where I tuck things away, and I don't know how this particular thing found its way into one.
I like "The Artist and his Work" because I get a little rueful humor along with the philosophizing. What I'm now really curious about is John Addington Symonds! These sound so Shakespearean/classically sonnety (which I think of as very English) but they must have been written in Italian, yes? Wonder how those sound. Clearly I need to do some reading about sonnets...Thanks, Tabatha!
I love that he wrote poetry about his art!
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