Indecent Exposure

"He who does not master the nude cannot understand the principles of architecture."

Michelangelo

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In 1535, Pope Paul III commissioned Michelangelo to create an enormous fresco for the Sistine Chapel’s altar wall. It was a big-deal commission—the most prestigious canvas any Catholic could hope for—and the artist was given free rein.

Well, sort of.

Daniele da Volterra, "Bust of Michelangelo", 16th century, sculpture, Louvre Museum, Paris.

Before it was even finished, Michelangelo’s The Last Judgment was being harshly criticized for its immodesty. The fresco’s 400 figures, including saints and Christ, were all stark naked. "Even a brothel keeper would avert his eyes, " exclaimed one outraged viewer.

One day, the pope came by with Cardinal Biagio da Cesena to check on Michelangelo’s progress. The cardinal was horrified by the nudity and compared it to a "scene fit for public baths and taverns." Not exactly a high compliment.

Michelangelo Buonarroti, "The Last Judgement", 1536-1541, fresco, Sistine Chapel, Rome.

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The artist refused the cardinal’s requests to clothe the characters in his scene. What’s more, Michelangelo decided to get even with da Cesena for his harsh critique.

The artist worked the cardinal’s facial features into his representation of Minos, the demon judge of the underworld. The Cardinal-as-Minos character appears in the lower right corner of the fresco. Wearing only his birthday suit, the character is accessorized with donkey ears and a coiled snake that seems to be… biting him where it hurts.

Baigio da Cesena as Minos detail in The Last Judgement fresco.

Hardly a year after Michelangelo’s death, his student Daniele da Volterra was hired to dress the controversial nudes. Da Volterra admired his master’s work and did as little as he could to change the piece.

But the little he did was just enough. The era-appropriate undergarments, added by da Volterra, helped the artist make a name for himself. In Italy, he is still known as "Il Braghettone," the breeches-maker.