Michelangelo di Lodovico Buonarroti Simoni (Italian:xa0[mikeˈlandʒelo]; March 1475 – 18 February 1564), was an Italian sculptor, painter, architect, poet, and engineer of the High Renaissance who exerted an unparalleled influence on the development of Western art.[1] Considered to be the greatest living artist during his lifetime, he has since also been described as one of the greatest artists of all time.[1] Despite making few forays beyond the arts, his versatility in the disciplines he took up was of such a high order that he is often considered a contender for the title of the archetypal Renaissance man, along with contemporary rival and fellow Florentine Medici client, Leonardo da Vinci.