Carrara quarry michelangelo biography

«Among the many treasures that will be on view in Michelangelo: Divine Draftsman and Designer are three sculptures the artist carved in marble from Carrara, including the monumental, unfinished Apollo-David.

Extremely hands-on by nature, Michelangelo became involved—quite literally—at the ground level as he planned his sculptures. He spent long stretches of time on-site at the marble quarries in Carrara and Pietrasanta, where he not only selected marbles and gave precise orders regarding the sizes and shapes of the blocks being quarried, but even concerned himself with the building of roads to transport the stone.

He maintained contracts with numerous marble excavators (cavatori) and quarry cutters (scarpellini); as well as with carvers (also called scarpellini), hewers, and squarers of blocks (squadratori).»

Another rare work in The Met's exhibition—opening November 13—is a letter written by Michelangelo in Florence to his servant Pietro Urbano, who managed