David, Michelangelo’s famous marble sculpture c. 1501-1504 portrays the Biblical hero with delicate features and a strong physique. Depicted in a classical contrapposto pose, David holds a slingshot and stone ready to face Goliath. The statue stands tall at 17 feet (5.17 meters), impressing onlookers with its sheer size, symbolizing courage and youthful beauty.
Michelangelo was commissioned to create the masterpiece for the cathedral of Florence. His style, which combines muscular accuracy with light and shadow to represent volume and shape in his sculptures, successfully captured David’s strength while exuding grandeur. David is considered one of his most recognizable works, an emblematic masterpiece of Renaissance sculpture.
David quickly became renowned as an outstanding representation of art at that time as it symbolized a stance against power structures such as the Medici rule in Florence where he lived during the commissioning period. Other artists such as Donatello and Bernini have also portrayed David in their respective artworks making it remain one of the most popular subjects of art throughout history.
