Figure Studies for the Sistine Ceiling (verso)
1510
From the collection of Cleveland Museum of Art
1510
From the collection of Cleveland Museum of Art
You see a man twisted in mid-air, muscles tight under his skin, drawn in quick red chalk. Michelangelo sketched these figures to plan the *ignudi*—the twenty naked men who sit around the edges of his Sistine Chapel ceiling. He worked out every pose on paper first, then painted them onto wet plaster. The drawing feels alive because it was never meant to be seen; it was just a step in a much bigger job. Look up *sfumato* to see how soft edges helped finish the final painting.
![Head of a Woman and Studies of a Male Nude [verso]](https://pub-3a17a9933ad74fb28aa30fa758592f23.r2.dev/artworks/bba81b0c130c2863/thumb.webp)
![Male Nude [recto]](https://pub-3a17a9933ad74fb28aa30fa758592f23.r2.dev/artworks/8c3354d89884753a/thumb.webp)
![Male Nude [verso]](https://pub-3a17a9933ad74fb28aa30fa758592f23.r2.dev/artworks/d48a81b2ad2bdbb8/thumb.webp)
