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1. Michelangelo’s David

2. Michelangelo’s David
This astonishing Renaissance sculpture was created between 1501 and
1504. It is a 14.0 ft marble statue depicting the Biblical hero David,
represented as a standing male nude. Originally commissioned by the
Opera del Duomo for the Cathedral of Florence, it was meant to be one
of a series of large statues to be positioned in the niches of the
cathedral’s tribunes, way up at about 80mt from the ground.
Michelangelo was asked by the consuls of the Board to complete an
unfinished project begun in 1464 by Agostino di Duccio and later carried
on by Antonio Rossellino in 1475. Both sculptors had in the end rejected
an enormous block of marble due to the presence of too many “taroli”,
or imperfections, which may have threatened the stability of such a huge
statue. This block of marble of exceptional dimensions remained
therefore neglected for 25 years, lying within the courtyard of the Opera
del Duomo (Vestry Board).

3. Michelangelo was only 26 years old in 1501, but he was already the most famous
and best paid artist in his days. He accepted the challenge with enthusiasm to
sculpt a large scale David and worked constantly for over two years to create one
of his most breathtaking masterpieces of gleaming white marble.
The Vestry Board had established the religious subject for the statue, but nobody
expected such a revolutionary interpretation of the biblical hero.
The account of the battle between David and Goliath is told in Book 1 Samuel. Saul
and the Israelites are facing the Philistines near the Valley of Elah. Twice a day for
40 days, Goliath, the champion of the Philistines, comes out between the lines and
challenges the Israelites to send out a champion of their own to decide the
outcome in single combat. Only David, a young shepherd, accepts the challenge.
Saul reluctantly agrees and offers his armor, which David declines since it is too
large, taking only his sling and five stones from a brook. David and Goliath thus
confront each other, Goliath with his armor and shield, David armed only with his
rock, his sling, his faith in God and his courage. David hurls a stone from his sling
with all his might and hits Goliath in the center of his forehead: Goliath falls on his
face to the ground, and David then cuts off his head.

4. Traditionally, David had been portrayed after his victory, triumphant
over the slain Goliath. Florentine artists like Verrocchio, Ghiberti and
Donatello all depicted their own version of David standing over
Goliath’s severed head. Michelangelo instead, for the first time ever,
chooses to depict David before the battle. David is tense:
Michelangelo catches him at the apex of his concentration. He
stands relaxed, but alert, resting on a classical pose known as
contrapposto. The figure stands with one leg holding its full weight
and the other leg forward, causing the figure’s hips and shoulders to
rest at opposing angles, giving a slight s-curve to the entire torso.
The slingshot he carries over his shoulder is almost invisible,
emphasizing that David’s victory was one of cleverness, not sheer
force. He transmits exceptional self-confidence and concentration,
both values of the “thinking man”, considered perfection during the
Renaissance.

5. It is known from archive documents that Michelangelo worked at the statue in utmost
secrecy, hiding his masterpiece in the making up until January 1504. Since he worked in
the open courtyard, when it rained he worked soaked. Maybe from this he got his
inspiration for his method of work: it is said he created a wax model of his design, and
submerged it in water. As he worked, he would let the level of the water drop, and using
different chisels, sculpted what he could see emerging. He slept sporadically, and when
he did he slept with his clothes and even in his boots still on, and rarely ate, as his
biographer Ascanio Condivi reports.
After more than two years of tough work, Michelangelo decided to present his “Giant”
to the members of the Vestry Board and to Pier Soderini, the then gonfaloniere of the
Republic. In January 1504, his 14 foot tall David was unveiled only to them: they all
agreed that it was far too perfect to be placed up high in the Cathedral, thus it was
decided to discuss another location in town. The city council convened a committee of
about thirty members, including artists like Leonardo da Vinci, Sandro Botticelli and
Giuliano da Sangallo, to decide on an appropriate site for David. During the long debate,
nine different locations for the statue were discussed, and eventually the statue was
placed in the political heart of Florence, in Piazza della Signoria.
It took four days and forty men to move the statue the half mile from Michelangelo’s
workshop behind Santa Maria del Fiore Cathedral to the Piazza della Signoria.

6. Michelangelo then kept on working on the finer finishing. That
summer, the sling and tree-stump support were gilded, and the
figure was given a gilded victory-garland. Unfortunately, all gilded
surfaces have been lost due to the long period of exposure to
weathering agents.
Thanks to its imposing perfection, the biblical figure of David
became the symbol the liberty and freedom of the Republican
ideals, showing Florence’s readiness to defend itself. It remained in
front of Palazzo della Signoria until 1873, when it was moved into
the Galleria dell’Accademia to protect it from damage and further
weathering.
Nowadays, visitors can admire the David under a skylight which was
designed just for him in the 19th century by Emilio de Fabris. From a
close distance, one can perceive Micheangelo’s passion for the
human anatomy and his deep knowledge of the male body.

7. Note the watchful eyes with carved
eye bulks, pulsing veins on the back
of the hands, engorged with tension.
Admire the curve of the taut torso,
the flexing of the thigh muscles in the
right leg.

8. The proportions of some details are
atypical of Michelangelo’s work. The
figure has an unusually large head
and imposing right hand. These
enlargements may be due to the fact
that the statue was originally
intended to be placed on the
cathedral roof line, so important
parts of the sculpture had to be
necessarily accentuated in order to
be visible from below.
Another interpretation about these
larger details lead scholars to think
that Michelangelo intentionally over-
proportioned the head to underline
the concentration and the right hand
to symbolize the pondered action.

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