Michelangelo began his career as sculptor in Florence. There he carved out of marble the masterful statue of the biblical
figure
David. In Rome he sculpted the
Pieta, a sacred tribute to the crucified Jesus and his mother Mary. Like most of his sculptures, these two were awesome in size and suggested controlled but intense emotions.
In 1505,
Michelangelo was hired by Pope Julius II to work at the
Vatican, Pope's court in Rome. Later, above the altar of the chapel, Michelangelo painted the
Last Judgment. Michelangelo's figures in his work were like works of sculpture. Their muscular bodies expressed life and power. Michelangelo ended his career by designing the dome of Saint Peter's Basilica.