Analyzing Michelangelo's Creation of Adam: An Organizational View

This essay provides an analysis of Michelangelo's Creation of Adam, a renowned Renaissance fresco painting within the Sistine Chapel. The artwork, executed between 1508 and 1512, is examined for its artistic techniques, including the use of fresco and wash techniques, as well as its dimensions and the artist's methods. The essay explores the historical context, the artist's background, and the organizational aspects of the artwork, including the portrayal of the human brain and the potential symbolism of human birth. It also considers the artwork's significance within the Genesis narrative and its influence on the history of art. The references include academic sources that support the analysis of the painting's medical interpretations and artistic elements.

Running Head: CREATION OF ADAM
Creation of Adam
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author Note

1ORGANIZATIONAL DEVELOPMENT
The Creation of Adam is an iconic painting of the Renaissance period by one of the famous
painter of the high renaissance period, Michelangelo Di Lodovico Buonarroti Simoni (Di
Bella et al.). The art is a part of the Sistine Chapel’s ceiling and was painted in 1508-1512.
The art had the dimensions of 280 cm x 570 cm and it was a Fresco painting where
the artist painted on damp plaster using Wash Technique which made a semi-transparent
layer of colour in the painting which enable the artist to add bright colours and shades using
the various range of brushes (Wing). Michelangelo used Cartoons to transform the design
onto a plaster surface in full size.
Michelangelo was an Italian artist who was sculptor, architect, painter and a poet of
high renaissance period who significantly influenced the creativity related to the western
visual arts. The artist born in the Florentine Republic. His notable tasks were David, Pieta,
The Last Judgement and the Sistine Chapel ceiling. The artist projected the one of the most
favoured subjects of art in Florence in form of David which was a statue of Biblical hero
David standing nude (Corti et al.). The Pieta is one of the most famous works in the Christian
community which gives us the view of the dead body of Jesus in the lap of Mother Mary after
Crucifixion. The Last Judgement is the illustration of the second coming of Jesus after the
death by the final and eternal judgement from the God of Humanity.
The creation gave two different portrayal where the first one is considered to be the
portrayal of the human brain the next one is the portrayal of the birth process. The
background appearance of God is thought to be of the shape of the human brain as the
outlines of it relates to the shape of the cerebrum in the outer and inner surface of brain. In
the next case the cloth appearing around the God is seemingly similar to the shape of human
Uterus and the green coloured scarf can be thought to be the newly cut Umbilical Cord (Di
Bella et al.). It is an art that can be considered to express the scientific process of human birth

2ORGANIZATIONAL DEVELOPMENT
with the creation of Adam, the first human. Still it is significantly confusing to observe the
navel of Adam as he was created not born.
It was an art stating the process of creating human by the God which is clearly visible
from the extended hands of God in order to spread the spark of life in Adam (Afshar and
Afshar). This gives the fundamental evaluation of the religious fact that God created the
mankind.
It is significantly controversial to state whether the art has any impact on the history
during the Renaissance period or not but it has an immense impact in the history of Genesis
where it is observed that a feminine character is gazing at Adam. And it can be considered as
the instinct reflex resulting from the concept of opposite gender attraction. The creation
reflects the primary belief regarding the genesis and is a part of the Biblical Genesis
Narratives.

3ORGANIZATIONAL DEVELOPMENT
References:
Afshar, Ahmadreza, and Neda Afshar. "Hands on stamps: hands from Michelangelo's
Creation of Adam." Journal of Hand Surgery 40.3 (2015): 576-577.
Corti, Giacomo, et al. "Modelling the failure mechanisms of Michelangelo's David through
small-scale centrifuge experiments." Journal of Cultural Heritage 16.1 (2015): 26-31.
Di Bella, Stefano, et al. "The “delivery” of Adam: a medical interpretation of Michelangelo."
Mayo Clinic Proceedings. Vol. 90. No. 4. Elsevier, 2015.
Wing, Stephanie Sorge. The Creation. Ed. A. Peter Brown. Coro, 2015.