Close-Ups of
Michelangelo’s David
Will Make You Appreciate It Even More
Few sculptures
are as famous as Michelangelo’s David, and if you’ve ever seen it
you’ll understand why. The masterpiece of the Renaissance period was
completed in 1504 when Michelangelo was just 29 years old, and today
over 8 million people per year visit the Galleria dell’Accademia in
Florence so they can marvel at the famous artwork.
The statue of
David is 17ft tall (over 5 meters), weighs 12,478 lbs (5,660kg) and is
carved from a single huge block of unwanted Carrara marble.
He took over
two years to carve, and it depicts the Biblical David who took down
Goliath with a well-aimed slingshotted rock to the forehead. It was the
first depiction of David omitting the giant entirely – the hero is
depicted here just before the famous fight.
His furrowed brow, the
tension in his neck and is position as if to give him motion gives a
clue of what’s about to happen. Michelangelo’s statue also shows some
unusual proportions – enlarged head and arms.
This was probably done
because the David statue was supposed to adorn buttresses of the
Florence Cathedral, so the most visible body parts had to be clearly
visible. It looks magnificent enough from a distance, but if you really
want to appreciate David sculpture, then you need to take a closer look
at his incredible attention to detail.
Thanks to these photos, you can clearly see the amount of work that Michelangelo has put
into this classical art piece; it is especially nice if you don’t plan
a trip to Florence anytime soon to see it for yourself.
Michelangelo started to carve the statue of David from a single block of unwanted marble in 1501
Two
other sculptors had tried to carve the block before abandoning their
respective projects, and the marble laid unused for 10 years
It took him 2 years, and the result is 17ft tall (over 5 metres) and weighs a whopping 12,478 lbs (5,660kg)!
It depicts the Biblical David, who took down Goliath with a well aimed rock to the forehead
Over 8 million people per year visit the Galleria dell’Accademia in Florence so they can marvel at the iconic marble statue
It looks magnificent from a distance, but you need to take a closer look to appreciate Michelangelo’s incredible attention to detail
“If people knew how hard I worked to get my mastery, it wouldn’t seem so wonderful at all,” Michelangelo once said
Michelangelo died in 1564, aged 88, but his statue of David will live on forever
Here’s an idea of what David might look like in real life
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