Leonardo Da Vinci, an artist and sculptor, was also very talented as an engineer, scientist, inventor and a religious man. He was born in the heart of the Renaissance, in April 15, 1452 near the town of Vinci, in Tuscan. Da Vinci, was not born in nobility and was son of a local lawyer. His learning started in the workshop, in Florence which was from an artist and sculptor named Andrea del Verrocchio. There, Leonardo was introduced to perspective, metalwork as well as, drawings and paintings and he quickly mastered perspective, which was Verrocchio's speciality. Soon, he became an independent experienced.…
Humanism, during the Renaissance period not only involved the study of ancient culture, but it also instilled a sense of respect towards human beings. Many artists at the time focused on the beauty and elegance of the human body. One of these artists was Michelangelo, a sculptor and painter. One of his most famous pieces of work was “David”, a 17 foot tall statue of a man. Michelangelo focused on making the statue as realistic as possible, in order to capture said elegance and beauty. Also, due to the context of the statue being directly after David had slain the goliath, Michelangelo chose “David” to be in a victorious pose. This…
The second work I chose to write about is The Genius of the Dance (Le genie de la danse) by Jean-Baptiste Carpeaux. I knew nothing about the subject matter of this work before visiting the museum, but I was very attracted to the beauty of it. The Genius is designed to be taken apart in certain places that are held together by pins. The separate parts were molded and cast, then joined by hand, and the seams were then covered by extra metal. The drapery gives the effect of movement, or dancing. The Genius of the Dance is a reduced version of The Dance with the same central figure. Also, Carpeaux got a lot of hate for the female nudity in The Dance, so he excluded them in The Genius of the Dance. I don’t think the texture or size of the sculpture adds to the impact of the work, because it wasn’t that big, and bronze was used quite a lot. I believe it’s the subject that attracts the viewers to this sculpture.…
When I reviewed the pieces done by Michelangelo I mainly focused of the function and nature of each piece, which allowed me to see how his pieces reflect on the view of creativity. As a whole, most of know the many pieces of art and drawings connect the viewer and the artist on the feeling and thoughts each one of them has. When you look at the pieces done by Michelangelo, you would feel ambiguity, which would project the beauty of the piece and the many different aspects that occurred during his life. In Michelangelo’s pieces, you can see many different types of design elements, which helps express his creativity to his…
From my perspective, but limited familiarity with works of art in general, the Raphael painting is significant in that it is considered a prime example of High Renaissance art and considered Raphael’s masterpiece. I believe it is also significant because as a component of the School of Athens (1509-1511) the painting over a period of 500 years continues to influence discussion and analysis among art historians and scholars.…
I am comparing Bernini’s David of the Baroque era and Michelangelo’s David from the Italian Renaissance. Michelangelo was considered the greatest living artist in his lifetime, and ever since then he has been held to be one of the greatest artists of all time. He was an Italian sculptor, painter, architect, poet, and engineer of the High Renaissance. Michelangelo’s David was a masterpiece sculpture, created between 1501 – 1504 that is a marble statue, of a standing male nude. The 17 foot statue was placed in Galleria dell’Accademia, Florence. The statue represents a Biblical hero named David, after he made his decision to fight Goliath but before the battle has actually taken place. A moment between conscious choice and action. Gian Lorenzo Bernini was an Italian artist and a prominent architect who worked principally in Rome. He was the leading sculptor of his age, credited with creating the Baroque style of sculpture. Bernini’s David is a life-size marble sculpture, created between 1623-24, located in Galleria Borghese, Rome. This statue represents the biblical David, about to throw a stone at Goliath, which will allow David to behead him. The biggest difference in the two sculptures is the moment represented. Michelangelo chose the moment before the fight while Bernini chose the split second when David is launching the stone from his sling. Bernini’s body is violently twisting bursting with energy while Michelangelo had stored in his figure. Bernini has literally created an event frozen in time during the fight and Michelangelo’s was before the fight. The statues are similar because they both were innovative with respect of the ancient tradition that created works that were perfectly balanced, but not as perfectly evocative. The statues represent the same character, the David who beats Goliath, and they both embody the ideal of male form in a natural setting rather than posed.…
Michelangelo and Verrocchio both have incredible artistic talents and show it in each of their David sculptures, yet they both convey a different meaning of David in their own ideal and using their own medium. Michelangelo and Verrocchio both represent David in different ways through the meaning they convey, the skills and techniques they use, and the beauty that they each portray . Michelangelo and Verrocchio are both artists from the city of Florence, Italy. In this piece both artists were trying to portray the biblical scene of David fighting Goliath, and winning. Their backgrounds have a major influence on the way they…
The Mona Lisa, created by Leonardo Da Vinci in 1503 c.e. and David, created by Michelangelo in 1501-04 highlight the late Renaissance artistry techniques and the renewed desire to capture the beauty of individuals (Scailliérez, Cécile). I chose these pieces of art work because the Mona Lisa specifically focuses on individuality while its creation set a standard type of pose painting for the Renaissance artists and David became a symbol of liberty during the Renaissance. The David statue stood tall indicating Florence, where the sculpture was from, was ready for any…
During the Renaissance there were many influential sculptures. Artists during the Renaissance experienced a renewed interest in classical Greek and Roman civilization. Christianity played a major role in Renaissance art. David was an important figure in more than one religion. In the Christian religion David was depicted as the youngest son of Jesse, who was a descendant of Jesus Christ, that was sent o the battle lines to bring new of his brothers. While at the front of battle he heard the giant Goliath’s defiance instill fear in the men of Israel. David unexpectedly offered to fight Goliath and actually killed him using only his sling shot and a pouch full of stones. Three artists depicted this biblical story in the Renaissance and those artists were Michael Angelo, Donatello, and Bernini. Donatello’s depiction of David best illustrates the story of David.…
Therefore, “David,” is a fit symbol of courage and civic duty to guard the city. Standing 13’5″ tall, the double life-sized David is depicted patiently waiting for battle, prepped with slingshot in one hand and stone in the other. Michelangelo, in his mid twenties, carved the David after he had already carved the Pieta in Rome. He carved this sculpture from a huge block of marble that had been abandoned decades earlier by another sculptor: Michelangelo took on the challenge of living up to Donatello and other precursors who had sculpted the same heroic figure. Instead of creating David to look relaxed and confident after his victory, Michelangelo's David looks tense and ready for combat. His brow is furrowed, the tendons in his neck are taut, as are the muscles in his nose and lips, and his eyes are focused on something in the distance. Despite this mental concentration, he stands in a relaxed “contrapposto” position, with his sling casually thrown over his left shoulder. This combination of intense expression and calm pose is intended to capture the short period between the decision to fight and the fight itself. The statues hands and head appear to be disproportionally large for his body, possibly because they were deemed more visually important for viewers who would see the statue high up…
Donatello was an artist in the early Renaissance. His interpretation of David is the earliest known life-size bronze nude European art (Stokstad and Cothren 321). The sculpture stands over five feet tall. Originally it was documented in the courtyard of Medici Palace in Florence in 1469. Florentines thought Donatello’s David to represent heroism and virtue (Stokstad and Cothren 321). During high Renaissance in 1501, Florentine commissioned Michelangelo for a statue of David (Stokstad and Cothren 344). Originally sought to display atop a cathedral, the sculpture was placed beside the Palazzo della Signoria for better viewing by the city (Stokstad and Cothren 344). Upon completion, Michelangelo’s David stands seventeen feet tall out of marble. Both statues are representation of biblical story of the giant Goliath and David is sculpted nude. However, Michelangelo sculpted David as in the story before defeating giant, standing for right over might. The artist positioned body (tall, muscular definition, and larger right hand), facial expression (staring off with brow as to be in thought) with just weapon (slingshot) on shoulder to show viewers the psychological preparation for upcoming battle (Stokstad and Cothren 344). Florentines used this as a symbol in their own military pressure. Looking back, Donatello’s David was sculpted as in the story after conquering the giant Goliath. He portrays David’s facial expression to show liberation, body is more slouched and less defined as Michelangelo portrays, holding sword in right hand with no apparent difference in size as Michelangelo, and also wearing helmet. Overall, both statues are significant to…
This statue in particular portrays different examples of humanism. The statue of David originated from a biblical story of David and Goliath; he is considered a hero and champion. It was his greatest victory and an ideal situation for a human. Therefore the sculptor, Michelangelo depicts David in the most idealistic form of a human; where he represents a strong being, exuding concentration and self-confidence. Michelangelo sculpted what would be considered the perfection of a human and this was largely attributed his own study of the human form. Giorgio Vasari, from his Lives of the most excellent painters, sculptors and architects, states “For in it may be seen most beautiful contours of legs, with attachments of limbs and slender outlines of flanks that are divine; nor has there ever been seen a pose so easy, or any grace to equal that in this work, or feet, hands and head so well in accord, one member with another, in harmony, design, and excellence of artistry”. (Michelangelo's…
Donatello rapidly matured his art and soon began creating his own style. In 1408 he finished the life-size sculpture of David. The figure was made out of marble. The figure follows a Gothic style, popular at the time, with long graceful lines and an expressionless face. The work reflects the influences of sculptors of the time. It's very well executed, but it lacks the emotional style and innovative technique that would mark Donatello’s later work. Originally, the sculpture was intended for placement in the cathedral. It was set up in the town hall as a symbol of defiance of authority to Florentines. Michelangelo’s admiration for Donatello is documented for the time of the marble David by a sketch after Donatello’s David. The statue of David would become the most famous body of work by Donatello. He developed his own style of relief known as schiacciato. This technique involved extremely shallow carving and utilized light and shadow to create the full pictorial scene(web). Observations were made that Donatello refrained from giving his works a high finish ,even at the risk of making them seem less attractive at close range ,in order to preserve the vividness of his “artistic handwriting” (Janson 20; vol.2). The harmony of his work melts as in a “fiery glow”, and his personality grows demon-like into his gigantic proportions out of the sturdy workshop tradition of the middle…
Michelangelo choose one of the most famous story of David, facing a nine foot, bronze…
When thinking of sculptures, one of the first that comes to mind is David. This statue was created of marble between 1501 and 1504 and stands over 14 feet high. David is a symbol that represents strength and anger. The statue had intended political connotations for the ruling of the Medici family. Michelangelo used David as model of "heroic courage" to demonstrate that "spiritual strength can be more effective than arms". Michelangelo insisted that David should stand as a symbol of the republic and act as a warning that Florence shall be governed justly and bravely". This was the first time since antiquity that a large nude statue be exhibited in a public place.…