Italian Qua#rocento Sculpture

Italian Qua*rocento Sculpture 1400-­‐1500 Donatello, David, bronze, late 1420s to the 1460s, Likey the 1440s (Museo Nazionale del Bargello, Florence) First life size nude since an<quity Subtle S curve of figure In triumph aEer killing Goliath, whose head is at his feet Black bronze has a shiny feminine quality Epicene quality of pose and features Standing self-­‐assured, but not triumphant, as if in reverie Young adolescent body Laurel on foppish hat alludes to David’s powers as a poet Nudity an allusion to David dancing nude in ecstasy at the return of the Ark of the Covenant to Jerusalem • 
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h*p://smarthistory.khanacademy.org/
Donatello.html 2 Donatello, David, bronze, late 1420s to the 1460s, Likey the 1440s (Museo Nazionale del Bargello, Florence) Donatello, Saint Mark, 1411-­‐13, marble, 93" (236 cm), Orsanmichele, Florence •  Commissioned by the Guild of Linen Weavers and Peddlers, suggested by pillow at base and ample drapery •  Although in a Gothic niche, the statue is free standing •  Contrapposto based on Roman art •  Drapery falls directly down •  Easy posture •  Face has piercing eyes •  Calculated how the sculpture would look from street level h*p://smarthistory.khanacademy.org/
donatello-­‐saint-­‐mark.html Donatello, Saint Mark, 1411-­‐13, marble, 93" (236 cm), Orsanmichele, Florence Donatello, Zuccone (Habbakuk) 1423-­‐1425, marble, Museo dell’Opera del Duomo, Florence Lo Zuccone (Italian: literally, pumpkin; figura5vely bald-­‐head) is a marble statue by Donatello. It was commissioned for the bell tower of the Florence Cathedral of Florence, Italy and completed between 1423 and 1425. It is also known as the Statue of the Prophet Habakkuk, as many believe it depicts the Biblical figure Habakkuk. The statue is known for its realism and naturalism, which differed from most statuary commissioned at the <me. In recent <mes it is gaining renewed popularity from its uncanny resemblance to 'Harry Po*er' villain Lord Voldemort. Zuccone is reported to have been Donatello's favorite, and he was said to swear by the sculpture, "By the faith I place in my Zuccone." It is now in the Museo dell'Opera del Duomo in Florence. Donatello, Zuccone (Habbakuk) •  Cf. Roman Republican art •  Strong, rus<c, not refined, nor idealized •  Heavy drapery sweeps your eye diagonally to head •  Fiery intensity of expression, meant to be seen by passersby in the cathedral square below •  Living out in the wilderness, looks haggard but divinely inspired •  Bald head carved roughly to enhance effect 7 Donatello, Zuccone (Habbakuk) 1423-­‐1425, marble, Museo dell’Opera del Duomo, Florence Donatello, Equestrian Monument of GaHamelata (Erasmo da Narni), 1445-­‐53, bronze, 12 feet, 2 inches high, Piazza del Santo, Padua •  Cast in parts; triumph of bronze cas<ng •  Idealized heroic portrait of a resolute commander •  Pulsa<ng facial muscles, heavy arches brows •  Swelling of horse’s veins •  Sense of classical revival: cf. Marcus Aurelius •  On parade hLp://
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