Get close. Lean in. No velvet ropes or motion-sensor alarms. No trip to Rome.<\/p>\n
While most museums don\u2019t want visitors within breathing distance of the art, Galleria Fort Lauderdale\u2019s new exhibit is giving everyone a view of Michelangelo\u2019s famous works at close range.<\/p>\n
Through June 14, \u201cMichelangelo\u2019s Sistine Chapel: The Exhibition,\u201d produced by Los Angeles-based SEE Global Entertainment, will showcase 34 life-sized masterpieces by the Italian Renaissance sculptor, painter, architect and poet \u2014 all recreated using licensed high-resolution imagery and an advanced printing technique.<\/p>\n
Visitors get an intimate look at frescoes such as \u201cThe Creation of Adam\u201d and \u201cThe Last Judgment,\u201d among others, inside the mall space formerly occupied by Neiman Marcus.<\/p>\n
Why Fort Lauderdale?<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re always looking for venues that bring their own energy to the exhibition \u2014 and Galleria Fort Lauderdale immediately felt right,\u201d said David Corelli, COO of SBX Group, which partnered with SEE Global Entertainment to bring the touring experience to South Florida.<\/p>\n
The exhibition has stopped in more than 50 cities worldwide, he said, \u201cand some markets just have the right chemistry. Fort Lauderdale has it. \u2026<\/p>\n
\u201cThe atmosphere, the accessibility, the complimentary parking \u2014 it removes every barrier between someone and this experience.\u201d<\/p>\n
Add to that South Florida\u2019s mix of \u201cyear-round residents, snowbirds and families looking for cultural experiences that go beyond the typical,\u201d he said. \u201cPeople here are looking for meaningful things to do together, and that\u2019s exactly what this exhibition delivers.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u2018There has to be a better way\u2019<\/p>\n
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.<\/p>\n
Related Articles<\/p>\n
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.<\/p>\n
\u201cFifteen minutes and you\u2019re out,\u201d he said. \u201cHe walked out thinking: There has to be a better way to experience one of humanity\u2019s greatest artistic achievements.\u201d<\/p>\n
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\u2019s frescoes on museum-quality fabric at full scale, Corelli said.<\/p>\n
More than 3 million people worldwide have viewed the exhibition since it premiered in Montreal in 2015, he said.<\/p>\n
Stripping away the distance<\/p>\n
Why is it important to make Michelangelo\u2019s works accessible to people around the world?<\/p>\n
\u201cArt is for everyone, but the reality is that most people will never make it to Rome,\u201d Corelli said. \u201cNo pope has
ever seen these frescoes the way our visitors see them \u2014 inches away, at eye level, at their own pace.\u201d<\/p>\n
Whether this is your first encounter with Michelangelo or not, he said the exhibition lets visitors experience the artist\u2019s \u201cgenius in a way that simply isn\u2019t possible anywhere else \u2014 not even in the Sistine Chapel itself.\u201d<\/p>\n
He said the reactions were the whole purpose.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019ve had people tell us they cried. We\u2019ve had visitors who went to the Vatican say they finally understood details they completely missed from the ground,\u201d Corelli said. \u201cAnd we\u2019ve had people walk out and say, \u2018Now I need to go to Rome and see the real thing.’\u201d<\/p>\n
While he said it\u2019s difficult to pick a favorite piece, there are two at the top of Corelli\u2019s list.<\/p>\n
\u201c\u2018The Creation of Adam\u2019 is the one everyone knows \u2014 that famous image of God reaching toward Adam. But when you see it at life size, inches away, it becomes something completely different,\u201d he said. \u201cYou notice the tension in the fingers, the expression on Adam\u2019s face. It stops being a postcard and becomes a conversation between two figures that you\u2019re standing in the middle of.\u201d<\/p>\n
And then there\u2019s \u201cThe Last Judgment.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cOver 400 individual figures in a single composition,\u201d Corelli said. \u201cThe rendition has literally left some of our guests speechless. Michelangelo spent six years painting it, and at this scale you can finally appreciate why.\u201d<\/p>\n
Viewing tips<\/p>\n
Corelli recommends keeping three things in mind when viewing the exhibit.<\/p>\n
\u2022 \u201cFirst, take it all in. Sit with a piece for a few minutes and let the details come to you,\u201d he said. \u201cPeople are always surprised by how much they see on a deeper look.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u2022 Second, don\u2019t be afraid to get close. \u201cYou can stand with your nose inches from \u2018The Creation of Adam\u2019 and see individual brushstrokes that are invisible from 68 feet up in Rome,\u201d Corelli said. \u201cLook for the hidden details in \u2018The Last Judgment.\u2019 Michelangelo painted his own self-portrait in there, and he hid a few surprises that are worth finding.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u2022 Finally, download the free companion audio guide that\u2019s available in multiple languages. \u201cIt adds the historical and artistic context that transforms this from a visual experience into a story you carry with you,\u201d he said. \u201cAllow about 60 to 90 minutes, and take photos. We encourage it.\u201d<\/p>\n