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The Sistine Chapel is coming to London.
Sort of.
In what is undeniably not quite the same thing as the Bayeux Tapestry coming to the British Museum, but still exciting nonetheless, a lavish new experience is aiming to channel the majesty of Michelangelo’s stupendous frescoes for a London audience this summer.
Michelangelo’s Sistine Chapel: The Exhibition is essentially an immersive type show in rough line with those Van Gogh and Klimt projection-based exhibitions, that will offer highly detailed, massive scale looks at the 34 frescoes that make up the chapel’s ceiling and collectively tell the story of Genesis. Rather than projections, however, these will be actual full-on highly details canvas reproductions.
Some of these immersive art exhibitions are a bit down-at-heel, but this would appear to be something classier, an earnest attempt to bring over a work of art – or collection of works of art – that will unquestionably never, ever tour in pretty much the only way that it is physically possible to do that. Tickets are priced £19.50 peak and £17.50 off-peak – so around the same price as the €20 admission for the actual Chapel.
Whether you’re wanting to get a closer look at Michelangelo’s transcendent art for the first time or have seen the real thing and fancy a refresher, this is as close as you’re going to get without hopping on a flight to Rome.
Michelangelo’s Sistine Chapel: The Exhibition is at 1 America Square (near Tower Bridge), May 18-Sep 6.
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Plus: the iconic Flying Scotsman train service is coming back to London.
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