And by small, I’m talking about a particular … statue.
This week in history, Sept. 8, 1504, the public had the fortune of viewing Michelangelo’s newest masterpiece in the Piazza della Signoria — the Statue of David. Imagine what it would have been like: the newly finished artwork standing at 17 feet tall, overlooking the bustling streets of Florence just outside the Palazzo Vecchio, accompanied by a sharp thunk, the sound of the first stone being thrown.
Hear ye, hear ye, welcome to This Week in History, The Daily Campus Column you can always count on to dig up the past and connect it to the present! My name is Isabella, and I am proud to carry on the torch of this column, passed down to me by fellow history fanatics and writers of Daily Campus past. Beginning in 2016, the column is soon due for its 10th anniversary, and I am so excited to be a part of it. As for my inaugural column, I want to discuss one of my favorite pieces of Renaissance Art. More than marble, Michelangelo’s statue was a symbol — the story of an underdog. But to Florentines, it was the story of their republic. So, without further ado, let’s get to it.
Michelangelo was 26, having just completed the Pietá in Rome (another amazing piece of Renaissance art), when the Opera del Duomo commissioned him to create the statue of David for the roof of the Cathedral of Florence. A significant reason for David’s tall stature was that people would have needed to see him from forty feet high.
Michelangele began in 1501, carving into a piece of white Carrara marble that had been discarded by another artist. At this time, humanist ideas of antiquity were making a comeback, and much of his work with the Statue of David had been inspired by that of the Ancient Greeks and Romans. Additionally, Donatello’s and Verucchio’s respective Statues of David paved the way for Michelangelo as well.
When his work was finally shown to the Cathedral Vestry Board, it was decided that it was too beautiful not to be placed in a more public place, which is where the statue’s controversy starts. When it premiered to the public on this fateful day in 1504, the work, while admired for its beauty, was indeed stoned. Florentines were, quite frankly, “going through it” during that time. They had only just become a Republic again after escaping from the grasp of Friar Savonarola. After ousting the Medicis from Florence, Savonarola became a rising religious and political figure who pretty much tried to ban doing anything fun. That being said, he felt that humanist ideals and art (among other things) were incredibly sinful. Eventually, he was excommunicated and executed for his actions, but the display of Michelangelo’s David was a significant step in bringing back art to Florence. And when looking past its vulgarity, Florentines saw that the statue symbolized them. The people, the underdogs, rose and took back Florence from the tyrannical Medicis and the theocratic regime of Savonarola.
Now, to finally address the elephant in the room: why is it so small? Some art historians actually believe that David’s small penis was intentional as a way to desexualize the statue. Whether that worked or not, I can’t be sure. What I do know is that when I was visiting Italy, it was on a lot of tourist merchandise.
That being said, even over 500 years later, this masterpiece still sparks controversy. A few years ago, an art teacher in Florida was forced to resign after showing a photo of the statue to her sixth-grade class. The parent who complained had considered it pornography, and as someone who grew up in the Florida education system, I can’t say I’m surprised that it happened.
I suppose that all this is to say that art is truly incredible; it’s one of the few things that transcends time and allows us to understand what the past was like. After all these years, Michelangelo and other Renaissance artists remain relevant, which makes me wonder which artists of our generation will be remembered for years to come.