Michelangelo: "Your Grace, I will give you actual drawings of the pietra serena doors, windows, pilasters, columns, niches, cornices. Then I will build models in wood exactly the size the tombs are to be. I will put on them the proposed statues in clay, made to size and finished exactly as they are to be."
Cardinal Giulio: "That will take considerable time. The Holy Father is in a hurry."
Irving Stone
The Agony and the Ecstasy
Ray is my Michelangelo. I am Cardinal Giulo--in a hurry.
One of the biggest take-aways, for me, within the 758 pages (!!) of The Agony and the Ecstasy is the preparation behind Michelangelo's masterpieces. The mixing of paints for the Sistine Chapel involved the preciseness of science. When he painted the fresco of the chapel, it could not be dry; but rather had to be a certain degree of dampness for the paint to adher. Thus he could only work on small portions at a time, and at the same time preventing seams between one day's work and the next.
Drawings and plans preceded the actual work. Besides that, much preparation took place in Michelangelo's thoughts and heart; which means we can barely appreciate his paintings and sculptures until we know some of the backstory.
Did you know that Michelangelo dissected corpses to determine how muscles worked beneath the skin, and to give the most accurate expression of motion? Oooh. Stone was a bit too descriptive for me. I finally skipped a couple pages. But you get the idea. Preparation . . . more agony than ecstasy!
I hate it! I want to get the project done and get on to the next one. We have plenty.
When we paint walls, Ray fills nail holes (even ones that will hold the same nail and picture when we're done). He fills dents made by furniture, and patiently waits for the putty to dry. He insists that we prime. He insists on putting plastic down--ever so meticulously. He tapes the baseboards--again, ever so meticulously. Amidst my irritation and impatience, I've told him that if he goes first, painting won't be done his way.
And it won't look the same, either! There's a reason we know about Michelangelo. It's his persuit of excellence. And while I'm not up for the competition, I'm guessing anyone of you could tell the difference between a room Ray painted and one I've painted. I'm learning.
Pick your craft--quilting, painting cars, embroidery, photography, woodworking, knitting. Preparation and attention to details makes the difference.
This is not my personality. I want the pretty without the pain. So I am . . .
Utterly Dependent on Him who is Utterly Dependable,
Lonnie
