Paco Rosic is an aerosol artist that is originally from Sarajevo. He is famous for accomplishing a life long dream of recreating Michelangelo's Sistine Chapel ceiling in the medium of spray-paint.
Paco’s fascination with the Sistine Chapel began at age 6, when his mother, Anna, began sharing her passion for art. In the family home outside of Sarajevo, Anna, Paco and his older brother, Allen, would study books filled with the works of Pablo Picasso and Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec. Although he was introduced to many artists it was the work of Michelangelo that caught his eye at an early age.
Rosic traveled to Rome in the spring of 2006 and spent four days in the Sistine Chapel sketching details. Back home, he practiced painting each biblical panel. Paco then hung the frames from wooden rafters in his garage and learned to work lying down. Paco used 12-ounce cans of Krylon spray paint to fulfill his lifelong obsession. Michelangelo, who was commissioned to paint the chapel in 1505, finished in 1512. Rosic spent four months reproducing a nearly half-scale replica of the fresco illustrating the birth of man and early Christian history, including nine scenes from the Book of Genesis and seven Old Testament prophets. He used over 5,000 cans of Krylon 12 oz. spray paint to create his vision. At $4.50 a piece that makes his masterpiece total of $20,000 or more.  During this time, the story of his recreation generated world-wide attention.  He was interviewed by the Chicago Tribune and Los Angeles Times, featured on ABC’s World News Tonight, and flew to New York for a guest appearance on the Rachael Ray Show.
Paco and his family spent their life savings, and his parents have taken a second mortgage on their home, to purchase a dilapidated building in Waterloo, Iowa.
They paid $67,000 in January, 2006 for the two-story, 1870's brick building that once housed an antiques store. The shop’s ceiling wasn’t curved, so the family hired workers to tear it down and create a plaster one that, at its highest point, is gently arched 14 feet above the floor. Paco ended up with 2,511 square feet of blank space.
When he started, he carried a sketch of the Sistine Chapel ceiling onto the scaffolding, but eventually, he left that at home because he memorized the painting. His reproduction is smaller, more vibrantly colored and has far fewer details. The eyes and cheekbones of the figures are made with broad lines of paint instead of tiny, delicate brushstrokes. Some of Paco’s Ignudi, or the naked males painted in the corners of the creation scenes, are surrounded by garlands of oak leaves similar to Michelangelo’s. The emerald-green garlands, like the folds in the prophets’ robes and the gentle sway of Noah’s beard blowing in the breeze, were painted freehand. When asked why her left out some details of the masterpiece he said “it’s too small of a detail. It would look like a big blob.”
Paco will continue to produce aerosol fine artworks in the future. Whenever he is inspired he works. Whenever he is commissioned he works. He is obsessed with his art and constantly looking at ways to push the boundaries of his craft.