Much To Admire

You can have a bit too much Art at times. I often find this the case when visiting major art galleries, and yesterday's trip to the Musei Vaticani and Sistine Chapel fell squarely into this category. Frankly if I never encounter any examples of Roman statuary again, I won't feel there's anything missing in my life.

Of course, it's impossible not to admire the technical artistry of it all. The marble almost comes to life. But, for this viewer, the problem lies in the 'almost'. It just doesn't live for me. Nearly all the sculptures impressed in the way they pointed to aspects of human experience, but they never really breathed - they just hinted at that remote (and disturbing) possibility.

In contrast, the modern stuff encountered immediately prior to the entrance to the Sistine Chapel blazed with life, when it wasn't just downright odd and puzzling. But, even then, I prefer to be puzzled than banged over the head with the kind of 'public' art that just states the obvious - that being, we're rich and powerful and we can embody who we very publicly are in these cold statues.

The ceiling of the Sistine Chapel was something else again, though. But difficult to genuinely take in with the crowd milling below and around and filling the sacred space with not-so-spiritual sound.

Must say, though, for all my reservations the visit felt like time well spent. It provoked thought. And it felt good to be in one of my fabled places.