The famously androgynous bronze David and Florentine Guilds

Much of Florence’s wealth depended on the manufacture and trading of wool and cloth and, of course, the commercial success of banking. Florentine guilds were secular corporations that controlled the arts and trade; collectively, they influenced the artistic legacy of Florence. During the Renaissance in Florence, there were seven major guilds, collectively known as the arti maggiori, five middle guilds arti mediane and nine minor guilds collectively known as the arti minori which competed with each other to gain commissions and status. The rivalry between guilds extended to the status of the artists they employed. A notable example is the competition set by the Cloth importers’ Guild ( Calimala)- one of the wealthiest guilds in Florence- in 1401 for the commission was won by Lorenzo Ghiberti, with Filipo Brunelleschi as a runner-up. Another major guild was the Wool Merchant’s Guild ( Arte della Lana). It took charge of commissioning a dome for the cathedral of Santa Maria Del Fiore ( Florence Cathedral) in 1418. This time, Brunelleschi beat Ghiberti to the prize. The works relating to the Opera del Duomo- as it is known- were overseen by the Wool Merchant’s Guild ( the city’s most powerful guild) who, in announcing the competition for the construction of the huge dome, established an architectural challenge that would help define the achievements of the city, its architect and the epoch. The Opera del Duomo put up an exceptionally large sum of money- 200 gold florins- to the person capable of vaulting what is still the largest masonry dome in the world. The greatest architectural puzzle of the age could be solved by only one man- Brunelleschi. He is credited with mapping the rules of linear perspective, recognising the Classical Orders of architecture, engineering a hoist to carry incredible weights for the dome’s construction and spanning the drum with the dome itself. The completion of the dome secured his fame and fortune, not only as a master mason- like his medieval forebears- but also as an innovative engineer with mathematical ingenuity and aesthetic vision. The dome is an enduring monument to the civic pride of the city and arguably, still, creates the most magnificent silhouette in Italy. It would revolutionise dome construction. The dome’s monumental scale testament to the domination of religion during the fifteenth century and the competition between neighbouring Italian cities, particularly Pisa and Siena reveals a great deal about the historical and social context. Its very existence demonstrates the importance of ccommercial patrons such as the Wool Guild, but also reveals the tremendous status some Renaissance artist enjoyed in their lifetimes.

The famously androgynous bronze David, 1420-1440 was commissioned by Cosimo de Medici from Renaissance sculptor Donatello in Florence. According to the story from the Old Testament, David is the young shepherd boy who, against all odds, defeats the giant Goliath with a single stone to the head. He then beheads Goliath in a final act of triumph. For the Florentines, this story was of great importance as it reflected their own political position as a small state, which would nevertheless triumph against adversity. However, Donatello’s rendering of the subject was radical and new in a variety of ways: the figure’s nakedness-heightened by his flamboyant hat and boots-set him apart from other fifteenth- century depictions of the same subject. The hat itself was a deviation from the usual iconography of the young shepherd boy, and the way the toes on David’s left foot caress Goliath’s heavy beard lend a sensuality that also broke with the past. Cosimo de Medici’s acceptance of this break with tradition reveals the family’s liberal attitude towards the arts. The Medici wanted to be known as intellectual leaders and despite the religious subject matter, this commission was certainly evidence that their interest in humanism and Neo-Platonism meant more to them than the furore this particular David caused.
Furthermore, as the first free-standing nude bronze since Antiquity, David was capable of being seen as an emblematic new man- a naked and individual figure, breaking completely with medieval tradition. Its placement, too, is revealing. This particular symbolic defender of the city was tucked away in the private courtyard of the Medici palace- perhaps it was considered too shocking to as a symbolic gesture for its patron. In appropriating David- who represented the Florentine Republic- the Medici expressed a quiet ambition, but only in the safety of their own home. This effeminate male appears boyish in nature, with little or no muscle definition, a lack of defined bodily hair, and a curvaceous form, especially in the curves of the bottom, back and hips. His contrappasto, which derived from Classical sculpture and was employed to heighten naturalism, exaggerates this, and also outlines his carefree stance. The shift in his weight distribution to the right leg is followed through in his tilted pelvis. This sensuality is continued with the lack of orthodox clothing, as he only wears detailed boots and a hat. In relation to the formal element of line, the composition of Donatello’s sculpture of the youth David, biblical slayer loosely follows a vertical line down the central vertical axis of the figure. this grounds him, heightens his self-assurance and gives him a dignified air. His contours are both defined and fluid over his anatomically correct body.