Even if you’re lucky enough to have seen Michelangelo’s frescoes in the Sistine Chapel in Vatican City, you’ve never seen it from this angle.
Michelangelo’s Sistine Chapel Exhibition, featuring life-size photos of the ceiling frescoes of the chapel, opened at Oakbrook Center Wednesday, and runs through Aug. 15. The exhibition is housed in the basement level of Oakbrook Center’s former Sears store.
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Tickets are $21 for adults, $17 for student/military and $14 for children. VIP tickets, which allow patrons to skip the line, are available for $26.60 for adults, and $22.20 for student/military. A family pass is $56 for two adults and two children. Additional children are $10 each.
“We are excited to bring this exhibit to the Chicago area. We are sure art lovers of all ages will find something to enjoy by studying these iconic images up close,” said David Corelli, Chief Operating Officer of SBX Group, the exhibition’s marketing agency.
The chapel’s 34 frescoes are depicted using “a special photographic technique that reproduces the look” of the original paintings, according to a news release.
The large reproductions, with classical music playing in the background, create an immersive experience. Producer Martin Biallas chose a “top 40” of sacred choir music to get the visitors in the right festive mood. It should be noted the music is not from Michelangelo’s era, because Biallas said, “the music of that era sounded very plain and not at all festive,” so he chose music from 200-300 years later.
Each reproduction is accompanied by a title card that shows where the fresco fits into the ceiling, and an explanation of who and what the fresco depicts.
The ceiling frescoes, painted from 1508 to 1512, feature key Old Testament figures and events. “The Last Judgment,” painted from 1534 to 1541 and also featured in the exhibition, is from the west wall of the chapel, and depicts the Rapture from the New Testament.
A QR code at the entrance offers an audio tour in English and Spanish on headphones for rental. Timed entries allow distancing between the frescoes.
At the end of the exhibition, PBS videos give details about this incredible work, focusing on Michelangelo’s life, the Sistine Chapel and “The Last Judgment” fresco.
The exhibition has previously stopped in Montreal, Canada; and Vienna, Austria. Its U.S. debut was at the State Fair of Texas. The touring exhibition is also currently running in Atlanta and Charlotte, North Carolina. Exhibitions are also planned in China and Europe once their economies open up for more visitors.
Masks and social distancing are required at the exhibit.
Michelangelo’s Sistine Chapel: The Exhibition is at 2120 Oakbrook Center. It runs 11 a.m.-7 p.m. Wednesdays, Thursdays and Sundays, and 11 a.m.-8 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays, May 19 to Aug. 15. Timed tickets are $21-$26.60 for adults, $17-$22.20 for student/military and $14 for children. A family pass is $56 for two adults and two children. Additional children are $10 each. Free parking is available. Go to sistinechapelexhibit.com/chicago/.
Wendy Fox Weber is entertainment editor and columnist for the Lake County News-Sun, the Beacon-News, the Daily Southtown, Naperville Sun, the Post-Tribune, the Courier-News and Pioneer Press. She can be reached at [email protected].