Michelangelo was an influential Italian artist born in 1475 near Florence who worked as a sculptor, painter, architect, poet and engineer during the High Renaissance. Some of his most famous works include the Pieta and David sculptures, and he also pioneered the Mannerist style as an architect and painted the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel. He wrote over 300 poems and died in 1564, exerting unparalleled influence on the development of Western art.