Florentine Focus

"The true work of art is but a shadow of the divine perfection."- Michelangelo

Much of Michelangelo Buonarroti's artistic career was spent in the city of Florence, Italy.  During the reign of the Medici family, Michelangelo was commissioned to create many different artworks and was heavily influenced and inspired by the ancient artworks collected by the Medici family.

 

During my time in Italy, I was lucky enough to go to Florence twice!  Once to see more of the city and some of the artwork, and the second time for a class excursion in which art was the main topic for the day!  My first time in Florence was spent with Katie and also our art professor who showed us around and also took us to the Bargello museum to see some of the things we had been talking about in class, such as the bronze and marble statues of David (from the story of David and Goliath) sculpted by Donatello and another bronze David created by Verrocchio.  Also in the Bargello were some of Michelangelo's earlier works, including a marble statue of Bacchus, the Roman god of wine, among many other works.  

"Bacchus" by Michelangelo

Bronze "David" by Donatello

Bronze "David" by Verrocchio

Marble "David" by Donatello

After the Bargello, we spent the rest of the day just walking around Florence, seeing the Duomo and Baptistry as well as the Ponte Vecchio- a street filled with shops selling things made of gold.  Florence is definitely a bigger city than Siena and has many more tourists.  Florence was where I also saw my first taste of home; a horse drawn carriage.  Just the scent of a horse made me feel at home!

Back of the Florence Duomo

Duomo

Gates of Paradise on the Baptistry

Baptistry; under restoration

A copy of the David by Michelangelo in Palazzo Vecchio

Location in Palazzo Vecchio where Girolamo Savonarola was hanged and burned

Along the Arno River

 

On our class excursion to Florence, we spent the day hustling from museum to museum to be able to take in all of the artworks that the city has to offer!  We started out at the Galleria degli Uffizi.  Some of the stand out works we saw there that we have also been learning about in class include the "Birth of Venus" and "Primavera" by Botticelli and the "Doni Tondo" by Michelangelo, along with many other great works, way too many to mention here! 

Botticelli's "Primavera"

"The Birth of Venus" by Botticelli

"Doni Tondo" by Michelangelo

  After the Uffizi, we went again to the Bargello and then made our way to my favorite part of the trip; to the Galleria Academia, which houses the topic for my term paper for art class; the colossal marble statue of David created by Michelangelo from 1501-1504.  The original David once stood in the Palazzo Vecchio, where a copy now stands.  This David is different from the earlier mentioned Davids for many reasons, but one of the biggest reasons is that this David represents him before his battle with Goliath, explaining the look of determination in his furrowed brow.  The earlier representations of David show him after the battle and is indicated by the head of Goliath sitting at their feet.  "The David" by Michelangelo is a 17 foot tall statue including its base and originally stood as a political figure for the Republic of Florence; staring from the Palazzo Vecchio towards the city's Goliath; Rome.  For the Florentine Republic, the David was not only the first colossal sized statue since antiquity, but also a symbol for defending the republic from its enemies.  

Our trip to Florence was short and sweet, but I feel like we saw the main attractions and got a good feel for the city.  After our day in Florence, Katie and I hopped on the "fast train" to Venice and spent the train ride reminiscing on all of the art work we saw in Florence that day.