The David’s of Donatello, Verrocchio and Michelangelo.

How did materials, sculptural traditions and political contexts shape each artists work? To what extent did the positioning of sculptures affect their meanings and even allow them to be appropriated? What particular challenges did the figure of David offer sculptures and what accounts for their different responses to them?

When we think of the most famous statue in the world, we are most likely to recall the figure of David. Large figure sculpture was an important element in renaissance art and played a key role in the growth of artistic culture in renaissance Florence. However, with three different artists having sculpted three different variations of David, it is interesting as to why within the renaissance period; they would result in being so visually contrasting. Here I will be answering the question as to why the three artists, Donatello, Verrocchio and Michelangelo, created such different perceptions of David, and what was it that may have encouraged these differences.  Looking at the sculptures from an artistic viewpoint, I will be questioning how materials, sculptural traditions within Florence, and the positioning of the sculptures may have given rise to challenges for the artists, and what it was that created the differentiation between the three of them. Moreover, I shall be analysing the political situations of renaissance Florence, what were people’s reactions to the statues and how this may have affected the artist’s choices as well as the end products.

Firstly, it is important to consider the importance of large figure sculpture in renaissance Florence and how the ideas for these sculptures emerged.  The substantial use of sculpture throughout Florence is a result of artistic tradition throughout the culture movement; the renaissance.  The Medici family, who was granted the greater part of European commerce for their success in new business methods, after Florence’s economy had been severely hit by the Black death of 1348[1], donated a large portion of their profit to public projects, most importantly towards improvement of the arts.  The seven guilds were created to run Florence, they consisted of the trades and professions considered most important, all having a strong social and political standing.  So how was sculpture used by patrons in this sense? Sculpture was commissioned largely by the guilds and political parties, which would accompany and aesthetically maintain the architecture of city. This leads us onto why the three statues of David were commissioned, why they were so important to Florence and finally how the artist’s executions of the three different pieces differ with reference to materials, sculptural traditions and political context. 

In order to make comparisons, we must look at each piece of work carefully in chronological order and in correspondence to its artist and their methods. Why a sculpture of David in renaissance Florence? David represented the Florentine republic. Donatello’s bronzed David was the first to be sculpted, with work starting in the 1430s when the piece was commissioned by wealthy patron Cosimo De Medici, ending in the 1460s ready to be installed in the court of the Palazzo Medici. Donatello had been known as being a sculptor of marble, but once he had become established, he started working in bronze which applies a different method than the subtraction of marble; bronze is a modelling type of material. The piece is made from a technique known as bronze casting which in renaissance time needed much equipment, expertise and money. It has been noted that it was the first artistic piece in which catalysed the emergence of renaissance art in Italy. So how did Donatello execute this commission artistically speaking? The key idea surrounding this piece is heroism. Donatello created the David in a true renaissance style of triumph, pride and elegance. As we know and see in David’s numerous depictions, he was to kill Goliath the giant using a sling and stone. In this particular statue, Donatello created the moment after the killing had taken place. It is interesting that the story suggests such masculinity and strength, but when we look at the statue we can’t help but feel a sense of ambiguity towards its representation. This notion is reinforced in the way that the young David is shown in a feminine cotrapposto, predominant S curved pose, whilst the contrast is created by David holding goliaths sword, creating an aura of physicality. In sculptural tradition, a statue as ambiguous and flamboyant as this had not been seen before. After all Donatello’s David is considered the statue in Florence, which created much controversy for the following political reasons. During the renaissance period, at least at the beginning, homosexuality was illegal and therefore considered a crime. So why did the statue create such controversy in regards to political context and previous classical tradition? Visually, the statue is flamboyant, stylistic, and rather decoratively accessorized; all attributes which were considered being reflective of an effeminate statue, it was open to question therefore the sexuality of Donatello its creator.  The statue is smooth, sleek and slender promoting a rather feminine feel towards it. David is also wearing an elaborately designed hat covering his long wavy hair which could well be a shepherd boy hat, as the bible describes David as a simple shepherd boy; along with knee high boots. Whether it was a conscious decision of Donatello’s to make the piece so feminine, or whether he was overtaken with the idea of creating something so decorative and elaborate that the end result was in case rather ambiguous, is an interesting question to raise when at a time of such political values were put in place. The piece accentuates a female anatomical pose with its positioning otherwise known as lordosis, which provides a tilt to the pelvis and creates a groove in the lower back creating a larger accumulation of fat around the abdomen; also his legs are much wider than those of a male nude. The piece reminds us of the womanly hourglass shape, created by accentuating the hips and pelvis. The inclusion of the hat, boots and sword seem to accentuate the nakedness of the statue, as well as the heroism and youth of David. Bearing this in mind, the statues nakedness and exposition of the genital area was indeed also seen as controversial as no one had seen an artwork including a naked man since the times of classical antiquity, maybe this was the breakthrough, a chance to rebel against tradition; which is what this statue and in essence what the renaissance provided. It is as if this statue was in rivalry with the antiques.  There is enough evidence from antiquity that this David was made as an adaption from studies of  iconographical works seen throughout antiquity,  because is it true that in Christian purity iconography we do not see firstly nude bronze statues, but also the sword and additional aesthetic detailing? In political terms the piece has been described as being commissioned by the Medici in order to “To cloak their dynastic ambitions under the ideal of republican rule”[2] as well as being a clear reference towards tyrannicide. With the Medici’s control over Florence being threatened , in 1458 Cosimo devised changes that would weaken the traditional republic governmental structuring, which meant that the citizens voting system was supervised by armed military ensuring the families consolidation of power would be carried out. This of course was successful in that the Medici’s ruled for a further eight years. In order to then make themselves seem less tyranny led, having the statue of David in an open space in their courtyard serves as a political strategy in conveying the family as patriotic leaders who were proud of the Florence they had help pioneer through the use of art. 

The next Sculpture of David we will be analysing is by Verrocchio. Of all the three sculptures we will be looking at, it is Donatello and Verrocchio’s pieces in which we can visually see a strong connection artistically speaking.  Verrocchio’s David was also commissioned by the Medici, Lorenzo and Giuliano, when work began in 1473 taking 2 years to complete. The statue is bronze like Donatello’s David and exaggerates the use of cotrapposto, but we can see a striking difference between the levels of modesty Verrocchio has given his statue in comparison to Donatello’s nude. I think Verrocchio’s approach to portraying a young David in this sculpture was to make him represent the epitome of heroism. We are given the clear indication as to the time frame in which we are seeing David; a severed head belonging to Goliath indicates the killing of Goliath has already taken place. Obviously the piece is an accentuation of Donatello’s David, which is most striking in the placement of the sword and raised arm with the hand placed upon the hip. Donatello’s David seems to be inferior in the ideal of a hero when compared to Verrocchio’s; this becomes evident by looking at the expression on Verrocchio’s David alone. Verrocchio has portrayed David as a strong, confident warrior, all dependants of a masculine anatomy which is portrayed through the use of prominent chest muscles, which are covered with a decorative but not overly elaborate breast plate, his arm and leg muscles seem to still be tense, maybe from the action that had occurred, this notion is brought to life by the prominent veins and tort muscle definition. The bronzing method used to make the piece compliments this idea also, making the outline of the body create life like formations, the light and shade gives the statue the essence of actual space and magnificent grandeur.

Michelangelo’s David 1501-1504[3], is one of the world’s most recognisable pieces of sculpture, considered a masterpiece of the Italian Renaissance and one of Michelangelo’s most celebrated works. It captures David in a pose dissimilar to the statues of Donatello and Verrocchio. The main difference is in the material used by Michelangelo, the piece is made from strong Carrara marble, as opposed to the bronze of both previous states looked at. Michelangelo’s depiction of David is not one of victory or combat, but merely a representation of David’s calm contemplation towards the killing of Goliath, displaying strength of the human form.  On Michelangelo’s return from Rome in 1501, he found himself in Florence beginning the statue of David which he saw as a symbol of Republican government.  So how does this last piece compare and contrast towards the earlier David’s of Verrocchio and Donatello we have seen? To begin with Michelangelo’s depiction of David is the most iconic, in the sense of spirituality and energy. The giant marble piece has a relic appeal about it, and without any weapons or armory protection this shows the strength. The facial expression displays the brave, noble charisma of a victorious mortal hero. The figure is shown stepping forward but captured in a moment in time as if standing still, whereas the previous two statues are stylised poses.  We can see Michelangelo’s “Neo-platonic myth”[4] approach towards his sculpture very much present in his David, often referred to as one of the great works of the high renaissance. The piece played an important political role within Florence in the form of its site position within the city. The majority of Florentine artists made up a committee and were the group to decide the setting of David; the Piazza della Signoria was the site of the civic government of Florence, with the warning stare headed towards Rome as a reminder of the Medici’s control over the city.

Looking at the three different statues of David and how the three different artists chose to portray  him in different ways, it is interesting to see why each artist chose to do this and how their designs were interlinked with Florence’s political issues at the time. I think the artists were heavily influenced by the Medici’s control and demands for a republican representative, in which case was David himself. However with three different statues being commissioned, the artists were bound to create them with reference towards the previous David’s created prior to their execution. We can see this was evident in the styles and general positioning of the statues. One main differing element is the materials used, Donatello’s statue was the first bronze male nude since antiquity, he created the field within renaissance sculpture as many bronze works followed, namely the David of Verrocchio which is very distinctive of Donatello’s work. This was a break with tradition, which saw a new tradition in sculpture and fundamentally the sculpture of the renaissance. With sculpture becoming more established with the artists, Michelangelo sculpted the David which is most reminiscent of the male anatomy. With Michelangelo basing his creation on drawings from real bodies and anatomical studies the result also saw the tradition of life-drawing and detailing of proportion rise. The artwork cannot be seen as ever creating difficulties for the artists whilst designing and sculpting, but the challenges I would say lied within the public’s perception of them, after they were unveiled. Living in the times of the Medici rule would of course mean that statues of the likes of these were sure to create some controversy. However, all three statues are celebrated amongst art historians and general art admirers for their role within Florence and as a catalyst for aesthetic creation of work and admiration in the Renaissance.

Bibliography:

Avery.C, Florentine Renaissance Sculpture, John Murray Ltd. London, 1970.

Greenhalgh.M, Donatello and his sources, Gerald Duckworth & Co. Ltd, London, 1982.

R.J.M Olson, Italian Renaissance Sculpture, Thames and Hudson Ltd, London, 1992- reprinted 1997.

Articles:

S.B. McHam, Donatello’s Bronze “David” and “Judith” as metaphors of Medici Rule in Florence, Source: The art Bulletin, Vol. 83, No.1 (March 2001), pp.32-47. College Art Association. Accessed: 04/05/2010.

Image References:

http://employees.oneonta.edu/farberas/arth/Images/110images/sl4images/Donatello_bron_David.jpg

http://www.reprodart.com/kunst/andrea_del_verrocchio_1365/david_ben93596_hi.jpg

http://michaelbrownvislit.files.wordpress.com/2009/09/michelangelo_david23.jpg

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[1]  Italian Renaissance Sculpture, Thames and Hudson Ltd, page 37.

[2] S.B. McHam, Donatello’s Bronze “David” and “Judith” as metaphors of Medici Rule in Florence.

[3] Avery.C, Florentine Renaissance Sculpture, John Murray Ltd. London, page 178.

[4] R.J.M Olson, Italian Renaissance Sculpture, Thames and Hudson Ltd, London, page 157.