PLASTER SCULPTURE OF DAVID`S EYES

Plaster cast sculpture of the eyeS of David.

17×7 cm

David was originally placed in the Piazza della Signoria (where a marble replica is today) and is now in the Accademia Gallery. Three times the height of a man, David stands almost 17 feet tall (about 203 inches) and was carved from a single block of marble. The piece was intended as one of several sculptures to be placed on the buttresses of the dome at the Cathedral of Florence. However, after seeing it, a committee agreed that the sculpture, with its beautifully articulated human body and genius composition, deserved a more prominent location, and so it was placed in the Piazza upon completion. Michelangelo’s composition, which shows the Biblical David preparing for the fight with the giant Goliath, was the first artwork to do so rather than depict David after his victory with Goliath’s head. David is shown in calm, deep concentration with a rock in one hand and his slingshot over his shoulder. Since the sculpture had been designed to be viewed from far below on the ground, Michelangelo enlarged the head and the right hand so that the proportions would appear correct and would emphasize the moment before David hurls the rock. Although a religious statue, the people of Florence at the time claimed the sculpture as a symbol of their Republican liberty. David is one of the masterpieces of the world.

Artist: Michelangelo

Museum: Accademia Gallery, Florence

Time Period: Renaissance, 1501-1504