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David is the main attraction here. He is magnificent, standing in the center of
the museum at 17 feet tall. He
represents a biblical hero, who is a symbol of “strength and youthful human
beauty” for Florence. This version,
completed by Michaelangelo, is quite unique when compared to other versions of
David that were done by Donatello or Veroccho.
Most other versions show David standing victorious over the head of
Goliath. Michaelangelo’s version is said
to portray David not after the battle, but just prior. Scholars believe that his facial expression
and body position depict this timeline. His
face is tense, the veins on his neck are out, and his arm muscles appear to be flexed. His head is also facing left with a rather
intense look in his eyes. Juxtapose his
face to his stance, which is rather relaxed, with a sling casually thrown over
his left shoulder. I read that it is
typical in Renassaince art to depict their subjects in calm positions just prior to battle. This is why Michaelangelo’s version is unique
to the others – it is a “representation of the moment between conscious choice
and conscious action.”
It is also interesting to note the history of this
sculpture. David was originally
commissioned in the early 14th century to be 1 of 12 large Old
Testament sculptures to be housed at the cathedral of Santa Maria Del
Fiore. It was originally commissioned to
Agostino di Duccio (a student of Donatello) in 1463. When Donatello died in 1466, the association
ceased the project. Agostino had already
been provided with the block of marble and had began to shape the legs, feet,
torso. The commission was then
transferred to Antonio Rosselino for a short period of time when, again, the
commission cancelled the contract. David
(which was really just a big block of stone, sat idle for 25 years in the
cathedral’s workshop. Eventually the
commission became eager to revisit the sculpture, especially considering that
it was sitting outside in the elements.
Famous artistis such as Leonardo da Vinci were consulted to finish
David, but it was Michaelangelo who convinced them that he should be the final
creator of David. Michaelangelo was a
mere 26 years old when we took the statue over and completed it after 2 years
of long and intense work. David was
originally located at the entrance of the Palazzo Vecchio. He was moved in 1873 and placed in the
Accademia Gallery to protect him from further damage.
When you see David, you will notice that he is somewhat
unproportional (large head, strong right hand, overly slender torso). This was not typical of Michaelangelo. There have been several ideas as to why this
occurred: 1) the statue was originally intended
to be placed on the cathedrals roof. The
most important parts of the statue would need to be seen from a long
distance. 2) some of the work had
already been done by Agostino, which interfered with Michaelangelo’s final
masterpiece.
We spent a few hours at the museum, not only looking at
David, but reading the descriptions and history on the other beautiful
paintings in the gallery. It was quite
fascinating to read how these canvas and wood-painted pieces have been restored
and how colors and other elements were revealed during the cleaning. In some instances, the restoration uncovered
the artists original intentions and changes they had made to the painting while
being completed.
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After the museum, we strolled towards Ponte Vecchio,
stopping in a few leather shops to check out the goods. We then made our way over to the Piti Palace
to tour the Boboli Gardens. This is a
HUGE place, we probably only got through a third of it. It was a VERY hot day, so we decided to just
see a few parts of the garden before finding a nice, cool place for lunch.
Till Tomorrow.
XOXO
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