Get close. Lean in. No velvet ropes or motion-sensor alarms. No trip to Rome.
While most museums don’t want visitors within breathing distance of the art, Galleria Fort Lauderdale’s new exhibit is giving everyone a view of Michelangelo’s famous works at close range.
Through June 14, “Michelangelo’s Sistine Chapel: The Exhibition,” produced by Los Angeles-based SEE Global Entertainment, will showcase 34 life-sized masterpieces by the Italian Renaissance sculptor, painter, architect and poet — all recreated using licensed high-resolution imagery and an advanced printing technique.
Visitors get an intimate look at frescoes such as “The Creation of Adam” and “The Last Judgment,” among others, inside the mall space formerly occupied by Neiman Marcus.
Why Fort Lauderdale?
“We’re always looking for venues that bring their own energy to the exhibition — and Galleria Fort Lauderdale immediately felt right,” said David Corelli, COO of SBX Group, which partnered with SEE Global Entertainment to bring the touring experience to South Florida.
The exhibition has stopped in more than 50 cities worldwide, he said, “and some markets just have the right chemistry. Fort Lauderdale has it. …
“The atmosphere, the accessibility, the complimentary parking — it removes every barrier between someone and this experience.”
Add to that South Florida’s mix of “year-round residents, snowbirds and families looking for cultural experiences that go beyond the typical,” he said. “People here are looking for meaningful things to do together, and that’s exactly what this exhibition delivers.”
‘There has to be a better way’
The idea for the exhibit took root more than a decade ago, after Martin Biallas, founder of SEE Global Entertainment, visited the Sistine Chapel in Vatican City, Rome.
He had the same experience as millions of tourists, according to Corelli, having to wait in line for hours, getting rushed through with 2,000 others shoulder to shoulder, with guards yelling, no photos allowed, and art viewed on ceilings 68 feet above you.
“Fifteen minutes and you’re out,” he said. “He walked out thinking: There has to be a better way to experience one of humanity’s greatest artistic achievements.”
So Biallas secured the rights to high-resolution imagery of the ceiling, and the SEE team spent years developing a printing technique that could capture the texture and color of Michelangelo’s frescoes on museum-quality fabric at full scale, Corelli said.
More than 3 million people worldwide have viewed the exhibition since it premiered in Montreal in 2015, he said.
“The Last Judgment” is featured as part of “Michelangelo’s Sistine Chapel: The Exhibition” at Galleria Fort Lauderdale. (Joe Cavaretta/South Florida Sun Sentinel)
Stripping away the distance
Why is it important to make Michelangelo’s works accessible to people around the world?
“Art is for everyone, but the reality is that most people will never make it to Rome,” Corelli said. “No pope has
ever seen these frescoes the way our visitors see them — inches away, at eye level, at their own pace.”
Whether this is your first encounter with Michelangelo or not, he said the exhibition lets visitors experience the artist’s “genius in a way that simply isn’t possible anywhere else — not even in the Sistine Chapel itself.”
He said the reactions were the whole purpose.
“We’ve had people tell us they cried. We’ve had visitors who went to the Vatican say they finally understood details they completely missed from the ground,” Corelli said. “And we’ve had people walk out and say, ‘Now I need to go to Rome and see the real thing.’”
Large-scale panels are part of “Michelangelo’s Sistine Chapel: The Exhibition” at Galleria Fort Lauderdale. The traveling exhibit uses high-definition photography to bring the ceiling frescoes to eye level. (Joe Cavaretta/South Florida Sun Sentinel)
While he said it’s difficult to pick a favorite piece, there are two at the top of Corelli’s list.
“‘The Creation of Adam’ is the one everyone knows — that famous image of God reaching toward Adam. But when you see it at life size, inches away, it becomes something completely different,” he said. “You notice the tension in the fingers, the expression on Adam’s face. It stops being a postcard and becomes a conversation between two figures that you’re standing in the middle of.”
And then there’s “The Last Judgment.”
“Over 400 individual figures in a single composition,” Corelli said. “The rendition has literally left some of our guests speechless. Michelangelo spent six years painting it, and at this scale you can finally appreciate why.”
Viewing tips
Corelli recommends keeping three things in mind when viewing the exhibit.
• “First, take it all in. Sit with a piece for a few minutes and let the details come to you,” he said. “People are always surprised by how much they see on a deeper look.”
• Second, don’t be afraid to get close. “You can stand with your nose inches from ‘The Creation of Adam’ and see individual brushstrokes that are invisible from 68 feet up in Rome,” Corelli said. “Look for the hidden details in ‘The Last Judgment.’ Michelangelo painted his own self-portrait in there, and he hid a few surprises that are worth finding.”
• Finally, download the free companion audio guide that’s available in multiple languages. “It adds the historical and artistic context that transforms this from a visual experience into a story you carry with you,” he said. “Allow about 60 to 90 minutes, and take photos. We encourage it.”
“Michelangelo’s Sistine Chapel: The Exhibition” is at Galleria Fort Lauderdale, 2414 E. Sunrise Blvd., through June 14. For tickets and other information, visit houseoflive.com.