Well, round two on the Sistine Chapel.I had actually visited the Sistine Chapel back when I was in college and living in Luxembourg. At the time they were actually in the middle (literally) of restoring the ceiling. A huge platform that ran the width of the ceiling was about right in the middle of the ceiling. So you could see half with the restoration and half without. The restoration was a bit controversial because many art restorers felt that they were removing too many layers - specifically, a layer of glue. One side thought it was put on 10 years after the ceiling was finished; the other side thought it was intentionally done by Michaelagelo baby and provided a certain amount of depth and modelling that Michelangelo was famous for.
I would tend to agree with the latter camp after seeing the ceiling again - they took too much off.
The one that really did it for me was the section where God was flying away - I think he just finished creating day and night or something like that. Basically when you see it for real, it looks like God's robe is a bit thin in the buttocks region - OK, it looks like he's mooning everyone down below. Not thinking Michelangelo could have gotten away with a mooning Creator back then - they were a bit strict on stuff like that.
Don't get me wrong, I think the restoration is fanstastic for its colors. When I saw the Last Judgement before the restoration, you had no idea what it was a picture of it was so sooty and quite frankly - a black wall. Now the colors are outstanding with really deep blues that remind me of Chartres.
Anyway - that's my unprofessional art restorer opinion.
