Most people who wait out the long, slow-moving line into the Sistine Chapel at the Vatican leave with an overwhelming feeling of inferiority, slumped over at the feet of the great Renaissance artist Michelangelo. Not this guy! Nope, a U.K. man named Robert Burns has this to say: "One day I saw some photos of the Vatican in Rome and thought, 'I could do that.' I never looked back."

So Burns did what any ambitious former decorator would do: he set out to recreate 15th-century religious frescoes from Rafael, Correggio, and, of course, Michelangelo in his modest, unassuming brick home, which so happens to be a rental.

Still, Burns has totally thought this thing out, holding fast to the rationale that "[m]ost people nowadays prefer to live in bland, flat-packed homes though. We've lost the art of proper interior decorating." To this effect, he's taken liberties with his muse, even going as far as turning comedian Russell Brand into the likeness of Jesus after he saw Brand's photo in the paper. 'It's maybe a bit irreverent, but Michelangelo used real people as models for his angels, so I don't see any harm in it," Burns explains.

So what's next for this mind of man? "Maybe they should give me my own daytime TV show where I could teach people how to do Renaissance makeovers," he suggests.

Meanwhile, there's one slight issue: the work is painted directly on the plaster walls. If they ever had to move, his wife says, "The new tenant might come in with a roller and paint all the walls magnolia." Dio mio, the horror! [Daily Mail]


Republished with permission from Curbed.com. Authored by Sarah Firshein. Screenshot via Daily Mail.