Who they were
Michelangelo was a Florentine sculptor, painter, and architect of the High Renaissance.
What they did
He carved the David and the Pietà, painted the Sistine Chapel ceiling and later its Last Judgment, and in old age served as architect of St. Peter’s Basilica, designing its dome.
Legacy
Regarded in his lifetime as divine — Il Divino — he set an enduring standard for Western art and shaped the course of sculpture, painting, and architecture.