Princes and popes courted him and quarreled over him: the brilliant sculptor, painter and architect of the Italian High Renaissance - Michelangelo Buonarotti.

This documentary presents the life and work of the artist, retracing his embroilment in the upheavals of his time.

The Renaissance Man: plaything of the popes, protégé of the Medici. Like them he was subject to the vicissitudes of power ? and he was a man driven to titanic works. He aspired constantly to achieve the seemingly impossible, and this he did with unimaginable perseverance.

With each work he opened up new worlds of artistic expression: in the frescos of the Sistine chapel, as in the design of the magnificent dome of St. Peter?s Basilica. At the Roman Capitol he created the greatest flagstoned forum of modern times. Also, his poems reveal that he was a difficult loner in search of solitude.

Filmed entirely on location, this informative and entertaining program features close ups of many of Michelangelo?s greatest works.