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David And The Counter Reformation Essay

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David and the Counter Reformation
Religious subject matter is prominent throughout art history, which further proves how much art does imitate life. Whether the artist creates the piece to honor their beliefs or to condemn and rebel against them, varies, which also displays the variety found in the arts. David and Goliath is one of the most well-known Biblical stories, and many Renaissance artists favored it, using David as their muse. The sculptures of David are iconic, giving art historians insight into how artistic styles changed with the times, with factors such as the Church influencing them. Many evolutions can be observed throughout art history, and studying their influences provides insight on past society’s beliefs.
The three Davids …show more content…

Michelangelo’s David is by far the one that can be easily identified or recognized by people around the world, but Bernini’s piece showed how modeling choices in sculpture eventually changed. Standing tall at 17 feet, Michelangelo’s sculpture shows an idealized David, with perfect proportions that are almost god-like (Haley “The Davids by Bernini, Michelangelo, and Caravaggio.”). In terms of the Counter Reformation, this went completely against what they were trying to portray. Bernini’s David allowed the viewer to connect with the story, because his depiction is a snapshot of David as he flings the slingshot at his opponent (Kleiner 653-654). The sculpture is full of action, drama, and the fact that it is life size makes the story feel closer to home. He shows his determination and bravery, which allows viewers to fully appreciate David and his victories (Kleiner 653-654). This period of art was about making the icons of the Catholic faith to appear more human and relatable, a guideline from the Council of Trent, and Bernini’s David exhibits that perfectly (“Catholic Counter-Reformation Art (1560-1700)”). The Davids transitioned from being somewhat stoic and idealized, to nervous contemplation, to the eventual full blown action of the event itself (Kleiner

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