Michelangelos sculpture and painting transformed Renaissance art. But he also created an important architectural legacy, one so boldly advanced in conception that it was not properly understood for nearly a century after his death. Most of his designs were never built, and today very little of what was constructed remains untouched and faithful to his original plans. Yet he freed architecture from its emulation of antiquity and transformed it into a dynamic art form. In tracing Michelangelos development as an architect, this illustrated volume provides not only a comprehensive history of his work but also fresh insights into his imagination and creative processes. Giulio Carlo Argans text offers an up-to-date interpretation of the place and meaning of architecture in Michelangelos artistic life. It is complemented by Bruno Contardils catalogue of 31 architectural projects, including such celebrated achievements as the New Sacristy in the Church of San Lorenzo, Florence, the Laurentian Library in the Monastery of San Lorenzo, Florence, the Farnese Palace, Saint Peters, and the Porta Pia in Rome, as well as various other designs that were never built. The amazing body of evidence assembled and analysed includes designs, plans, contracts, related correspondence and extracts from Michelangelos own "poetry diary". Michelangelos architecture testifies to the vision and ambition of this greatest of Renaissance men. Only through it can we reach a complete understanding of his achievement. Giulio Carlo Argan (1909-82) was one of Italys most esteemed art historians and critics, and the author of numerous studies. He taught at the University of Palermo and the University of Rome, and was mayor of Rome from 1976 to 1979 and later a member of the Italian Senate. Bruno Contardi, a student of Giulio Carlo Argan, is the author of several works on Renaissance and Baroque sculpture and architecture.