I didn't always enjoy learning about history at school. However, I do love art, and when I learn about history through art, making connections between historical figures or events through art or poetry, it fascinates me. Having read some of Michelangelo's poetry in his book "The Complete Poems of Michelangelo", and also being a great fan of Michelangelo's artistic portrayals of the human body, as well as the detailed attention to fabric by Leonardo da Vinci, I was intrigued to find a book entitled "The Lost Battles" by Jonathan Jones, whilst browsing through the National Gallery shop on a recent trip through London. It details the bitter feuds between the two artists during Renaissance Italy. Interestingly it describes how Raphael, a rival painter to Michelangelo, painted Michaelangelo amongst the characters found in the wall painting entitled: "The School of Athens":
"Raphael wittingly included Michelangelo in his mural, brooding massively, leaning his head on his hand whilst he scribbled poetry on a sheet placed on the stone block beside him. His face is downcast in introspection beneath his unkempt black hair."
And here is the painting. A glimpse into the life of the poet at work! See if you can spot Michelangelo in the painting.
