Adam and Eve
Artist: Michelangelo- Sistine Chapel
2007-09-21 15:49
This panel follows the creation of Adam and Eve in Michelangelo’s central Genesis cycle. It joins two successive episodes in one continuous landscape: the temptation in Eden and the expulsion that follows. The painting forms the turning point between humanity’s original innocence and the troubled history depicted in the Noah scenes.
Genesis 3 recounts the serpent’s temptation, the disobedience of Adam and Eve, and their departure from the garden. The scene shows the consequences of choosing against God’s command. Christian readers have long connected this fall with the need for redemption, a theme developed in Romans 5:12–19.
A tree divides the panel into two related moments. On one side, Adam and Eve reach toward the forbidden fruit; on the other, they recoil as an angel drives them from Eden. Michelangelo changes their posture and expression to make the loss of innocence visible.
