Michelangelo was the first superstar artist. He was a sculptor a painter an architect a poet and an engineer.
An outsider touched by genius. His Statue of David, the most famous statue in the world,
personifies the aesthetics of high Renaissance art, the politics of
Renaissance Florence and the technical virtuosity of Greek sculpture.
The story of Michelangelo's David is anything but the story of a teenage boy king who slew Goliath.
In one of his poems, Michelangelo wrote (old Italian: "son d'esser bruto"): I know I am ugly.
His nose was broken and appeared crushed into his face which he said gave him "the look of a beggar".
He was tortured by his appearance and alienated from his own body. Despite or perhaps because of
this, he would spend his life in pursuit of sublime perfection. He could do little about his own looks
but he would make sure his David would be the standard by which male Beauty would be judged.
Michelangelo believed that he was a tool of God. He wasn't creating a sculpture from marble, he
was simply releasing the figure imprisoned within it. Unfinished work by Michelangelo
gives us many insights into his techniques. Most sculptors would create a clay model and
then mark up their block of marble to know where to chip. But Michelangelo worked mostly freehand,
starting from the front and working back. To sculpt in marble you need the strength of
an athlete and the dexterity of a surgeon. Any slip-up can destroy years of work.
Michelangelo would start by what is called "roughing out". Taking the bulk of the weight off with a
point chisel and a large mallet, for getting it down to the general shape of the sculpture.
Then he'd use a tooth tool and a smaller hammer, for more detailed work in modeling the form
As he needed more details, he'd use finer and finer tooth chisels. He would use a drill to get into
the deeper crevices. Then he would refine using various smaller tools. Followed by finishing the
surface with a tool like the "rasp", a sort of file. Finally he would polish the statue using abrasive
pumice stones, and then leather until it is smooth and glossy. If we look at his unfinished work here,
we can clearly see the sculpture emerging from the stone. The marks we see here were made by
Michelangelo's own hands. The outer part show us where Michelangelo started to cut away the stone
with a large pick and a mallet, and in this area we can clearly see he has used a tooth chisel.
Here on the chest we see even more detail, and the marks are fainter where he has used much finer tools.
Michelangelo was 26 when he was asked to sculpt a colossal statue of the biblical hero David,
to be placed on the roof of the Cathedral in Florence, 80 metres above street level.
Only two years before he had carved the achingly beautiful "Pietà" in Rome, and he was already
considered a master. He was asked to use an old block of marble already owned by the cathedral
that had been sitting around for 50 years. Two other sculptors had attempted to use it but
the marble was flawed, and considered too narrow to produce a successful figure. One sculptor had
even carved a large hole out between, what were to have been the legs of his figure, but where others
saw flaws, Michelangelo saw opportunity. Because of the shape of the marble Michelangelo had to be
precise. There was no room for manoeuvre. David had to look to the side - as there wasn't enough
marble to have him facing forward - David had to be in the "contrapposto" position, so that his legs
would fit around the large hole already in the marble. And he would have to be slender because
of the depth of the marble.
The story of David and Goliath is the Biblical story of the Philistine giant defeated by the teenage Israelite,
armed only with his sling. The finale of the story is David cutting off his head and holding it up to the cheering crowd.
Traditionally David had been portrayed at the point of victory. Triumphant over the dead Goliath.
Florentine artist like Donatello and Verrocchio, depicted their own version of David - standing over Goliath's severed head.
All statues are more than mere representations, but Michelangelo's take on it would be revolutionary.
By removing the conventional attributes of the biblical hero, stripping him down, both
literally and figuratively, Michelangelo also removes a simplistic reading of it as just an
illustration of the story. And gives it a wider metaphorical meaning. For the first time in art,
David is depicted BEFORE the battle, rather than the moment of victory.
This changes everything.
first and foremost Michelangelo's David depicts rationality. David isn't about to fight Goliath
with brute strength, but with skill and reason. David represents the humanist ideal of a man,
who can become a hero, by his intelligence and willpower alone. These are the virtues of the
"thinking man" considered perfection, during the Renaissance. Michelangelo catches him at the
peak of his concentration, as he contemplates the challenge ahead of him. David is no longer
the traditional self-assured boy. Now he is shown as an apprehensive man. David's neck is tense,
his thigh muscles are flexed, his nostrils are flared, and his brow is furrowed with fear.
He is just about to glide easily and naturally into action. He is tense but contemplates the challenge ahead of him,
with a calculated gaze. The rock is hidden inside his right palm, the slingshot rests on his shoulder,
and hangs down his back - almost invisible. Emphasising that David's victory was intellectual.
His chest appears to pulse with anxiety.
Like all of Michelangelo's sculptures, the viewer sees David
at a specific and pivotal point. It is not meant to be the whole story.
David is in motion. The position he is in, is known as "Contrapposto" or "counter pose".
It was invented by the ancient Greeks, and is a very natural and human way to stand.
The red line show where his muscles are tense, and the yellow ones where his muscles are relaxed.
Most of the weight is on one leg, with the other leg forward,
causing the figures hips and shoulders to rest at opposing angles.
Giving a slight "S-curve" to the entire torso, and therefore giving the statue a more dynamic look.
The story of David and Goliath would come to represent the city of Florence itself.
During the Renaissance, Italy was a collection of city-states, each with its own ruler.
The newly independent Republic of Florence, saw itself as "the David of Italy".
Holding out with unexpected strength against the Medicis,
and the powerful and all-consuming influence of the Pope in Rome.
This point was emphasised when David was placed in a secular spot rather than its intended religious one.
Commissioned as a statue of the biblical story - in Michelangelo's hands it becomes something else entirely.
The proportions of David are not typical of Michelangelo's work.
The figure has an unusually large head and hands. But Michelangelo, who had dissected many cadavers
understood the human body better than any physician. As per the commission, the statue was designed to be seen
from 80 metres below. In 2010, a fibreglass replica was temporarily placed in the spot originally planned for David
And we can clearly see that the proportions work perfectly when seen from below
Nudity was unusual at the time for a biblical story, but the Renaissance was a decisive time
for the nude in Western art. A renewed interest in ancient Greek and Roman art brought the human body
to the forefront of artistic innovation. During the Renaissance, achievement in representing the body,
became the standard for measuring artistic genius. It is far harder to depict a nude figure
than a clothed one. It is a myth though, that Renaissance Europeans were comfortable with
nude bodies in art, particularly when displayed in public. In fact, the city fathers had a garland of
28 gilded copper leaves made, to protect David's modesty, and in later years he wore a fig leaf, as this photo from the 1860s shows.
Why is the Jewish hero David, not circumcised?
Again, we can trace this back to the inspiration for the Renaissance: The ancient Greeks and Romans.
They regarded circumcision as barbaric, and there are no depictions of circumcision in ancient statuary.
Also, the Catholic Church denounced circumcision in the Middle Ages.
The Jewish figure of David has been placed into the Christian context of Florence. A hallmark of the high Renaissance.
It has been remarked that David's penis is rather small. This was considered an indication of modesty and
respectability, and shows that the biblical figure is in control of his own urges.
We can contrast that with contemporary images of satyrs and other figures which represented evil sexuality
David has a slight squint - it is rarely remarked on but his eyes point in slightly different directions.
This is a typical Michelangelo trick, to pull us into the eyes of David.
The pupils are carved out hollow, to capture the changing sunlight, adding to the intensity of the gaze.
Michelangelo calculated every angle and always considered the position of the viewer.
The details are extraordinary.
My own favourite is the jugular vein, which is swollen. This only occurs when people get excited or nervous.
Michelangelo understood this, over a century BEFORE scientists would describe the circulatory system.
The veins in the raised left hand are delicate, while the veins in the hanging right hand are pulsing and more well defined.
The way our blood circulates, this is exactly what would happen to our own hands in the same position
Every detail points to Michelangelo's passion for human anatomy.
Michelangelo, who never wasted a minute of his life, worked morning noon and night on David,
alone and in total secrecy. At night he would attach candles to his hat. He rarely ate and
when he did sleep, he slept in his clothes which he seldom, if ever changed.
In 1504 he finally presented his giant to the cathedral committee. They were astonished at Michelangelo's
skills, and agreed it was far too perfect to be placed at such a height.
They decided to find a better location - and eventually decided it should be placed in the political heart of Florence.
In Piazza della Signoria in front of the town hall where its copy still is today.
One member of the committee tried to persuade them to place David in a less prominent place.
His name?
Leonardo da Vinci.
David is truly a colossus. At nearly six metres tall and weighing six tons,
it took four days and 40 men to move the statue half a mile from Michelangelo's workshop.
In a gesture of defiance, David was placed facing south - towards Rome.
Michelangelo, then added the finishing touches on site.
Originally the sling and tree stump support were gilded with gold, as seen in these reconstructions.
David received a rapturous reception from the Florentines,
and right from the start it was hailed as a masterpiece - and a symbol of the Republic.
The Italian sixteenth century historian, Giorgio Vasari wrote:
"After seeing this, no one need wish to look at any other sculpture, or the work of any other artists".
in 1873 David was moved to the Accademia gallery to protect it from environmental damage.
And in 1910 a full-size copy was placed in the square.
The fig-leaf was eventually removed and David could be seen as Michelangelo intended.
Statues have power beyond their initial reading.
One man's "hero" is another man's symbol of oppression.
Michelangelo's David has had his fair share of controversies,
but has always been on the side of the oppressed, the underdog.
David represents the power to overcome adversity, in the face of insurmountable odds.
And we can all relate to that.
Michelangelo would go on to create many masterpieces. But his miraculous transformation of a
shepherd boy into the physical embodiment of Florence, would prove to be a defining moment
in his artistic career. He was an alchemist who turned marble into flesh and bone, and brought a
psychological insight and physical realism to sculpture, never seen before.
He died in Rome in February of 1564. Still working at the age of 88 years old,
having outlived both his art rivals - Leonardo da Vinci AND Raphael.
He was brought back to Florence, to be buried in Santa Croce church.
Just a stone's throw away from his divine David.