Michelangelo's David Vs. Verrocchio
Ninad Gokhale
Professor Trautrimas
English 120-05
6 November 2016
Michelangelo’s David vs. Verrocchio’s David
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 …show more content…
The biggest difference between the two is the variation of the medium. Michelangelo David uses the white marble, and Verrocchio uses bronze. Michelangelo had a deep understanding of the complexity of the human anatomy. Therefore, he was able to make it look anatomically correct. The detail in the body of Michelangelo’s David further shows his knowledge in human anatomy. He details the veins on the hands and adds depth in the pupils of the eyes to make the piece look realistic(Italian Renaissance5). He is able to show the muscular structure of David allowing the sculpture to look even more human. Verrocchio’s David, however, used bronze to capture the image of David. “To see first Donatello’s, then Verrocchio’s, then Michelangelo’s, one has a sense of the artistic tradition passed down through generations… Each artist tries his hand at the subject of his predecessor, simultaneously paying homage and trying to outdo the past master” (Charney2). Verrocchio is using bronze and trying to take his own spin on the works of Donatello's David. Verrocchio’s David differs from both of the others though, because his is clothed. Michelangelo challenges both Verrocchio and Donatello's skill thus, the use of marble, which was his primary medium. “The model for the statue was a young artist from Verrocchio's studio, Leonardo da Vinci” (Vincent Finnan). This technique is different because he is the only one of the three artist to use a live model according to legend. The techniques used by Michelangelo and Verrocchio allowed them to add more beauty to each of their
Professor Trautrimas
English 120-05
6 November 2016
Michelangelo’s David vs. Verrocchio’s David
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 …show more content…
The biggest difference between the two is the variation of the medium. Michelangelo David uses the white marble, and Verrocchio uses bronze. Michelangelo had a deep understanding of the complexity of the human anatomy. Therefore, he was able to make it look anatomically correct. The detail in the body of Michelangelo’s David further shows his knowledge in human anatomy. He details the veins on the hands and adds depth in the pupils of the eyes to make the piece look realistic(Italian Renaissance5). He is able to show the muscular structure of David allowing the sculpture to look even more human. Verrocchio’s David, however, used bronze to capture the image of David. “To see first Donatello’s, then Verrocchio’s, then Michelangelo’s, one has a sense of the artistic tradition passed down through generations… Each artist tries his hand at the subject of his predecessor, simultaneously paying homage and trying to outdo the past master” (Charney2). Verrocchio is using bronze and trying to take his own spin on the works of Donatello's David. Verrocchio’s David differs from both of the others though, because his is clothed. Michelangelo challenges both Verrocchio and Donatello's skill thus, the use of marble, which was his primary medium. “The model for the statue was a young artist from Verrocchio's studio, Leonardo da Vinci” (Vincent Finnan). This technique is different because he is the only one of the three artist to use a live model according to legend. The techniques used by Michelangelo and Verrocchio allowed them to add more beauty to each of their