Sebastiano del Piombo
A fellow painter and close friend of Michael Angelo.
Core Belief
"Success in the art world depends on both talent and connections. It's important to cultivate relationships with powerful patrons and to stay abreast of the latest trends and gossip."
Worldview
He sees the art world as a competitive arena, where artists must constantly strive to outdo each other and to secure commissions. He is pragmatic and realistic, willing to compromise his artistic principles to achieve success.
Personality
Sebastiano is depicted as jovial, gossipy, and somewhat opportunistic. He is a talented painter, but also a shrewd social climber, eager to gain favor with powerful patrons. He values his friendship with Michael Angelo, but is not above using it to advance his own career.
In Their Own Words
"For I know how much the Pope values you, and when he speaks of you it is as if he were speaking of his own brother, almost with tears in his eyes; for he has told me that you were brought up together, and shows that he knows and loves you. But you frighten everybody, even Popes!"
"As to what you reply to me about your terribleness, I for my part do not find you terrible; and if I have not written to you about this, do not wonder, for you do not appear to me terrible except only in art--that is to say, the greatest master that has ever been; so it seems to me if I am in error I am to blame."
"Firstly, you sent him to Rome with the statue, to finish and erect it. What he did and did not do you know; but I must let you understand that wherever he has worked he has maimed it."
Other Characters from Michael Angelo Buonarroti: With Translations Of The Life Of The Master By His Scholar, Ascanio Condivi, And Three Dialogues From The Portugese By Francisco d'Ollanda
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