David
Dublin Core
Title
David
Subject
Statue of David during fight with Goliath
Description
Bernini’s sculpture, David, was commissioned by Cardinal Scipione Borghese for the Borghese Gallery. The sculpture was done in marble over the course of seven months spanning 1623 to 1624 [1].
In the life size sculpture, David is rotating his body in preparation to launch the rock at Goliath. Biting his lower lip and furrowing his eyebrows, David’s face is saturated with tension. He carries a pouch for the rock, and wears a cloth draped around his waist. David’s muscles appear anatomically accurate with muscles flexed emphasizing the tension.
Caught in a moment of tension, Bernini’s David evokes feelings of uncertainty and power. Unlike prior sculptures which capture a moment of victory, Bernini captures the dynamic moment before victory [2]. The viewer almost roots for David to follow through with his throw and defeat Goliath.
Given the composition of the piece, the viewer takes the position of a bystander of the fight between David and Goliath. Rotated around the central point of his abdomen and looking over his pulled forward shoulder, the viewer feels adjacent to the fight, trapped in the events to unfold.
Bernini’s decision to capture a moment of tension and motion in his sculpture demonstrates his ability to break norms surrounding a medium. While sculptures were traditionally used as a medium to express pose and stillness, Bernini embraces motion [3]. His choice to make the viewer an active bystander watching a scene unfold contrasts the typical role of the viewer as a passive observer and admirer - it instead mirrors the motion captured in paintings during the Baroque and Renaissance periods. Through an analysis of Rubens painting of David and Michelangelo’s sculpture, an understanding of Bernini’s command of medium can be fleshed out. With David, Bernini uses sculpture as a mechanism to depict a moment typically constrained to paintings. This demonstrates his ability to think outside the constraints set for media and unit visual art under the theme of capturing moments.
[1] “David .” Galerie Borghèse. Galleria Borghese, July 28, 2021. https://borghese.gallery/collection/sculpture/david.html.
[2] Harris, Beth, and Steven Zucker. “Bernini's David.” Lumen. Accessed December 2, 2021. https://courses.lumenlearning.com/zeliart102/chapter/berninis-david/.
[3] Warwick, Genevieve. “Bernini (1598–1680): Sculpting Sainthood.” Studies: An Irish Quarterly Review 104, no. 416 (2015): 444–55. http://www.jstor.org/stable/24640794.
In the life size sculpture, David is rotating his body in preparation to launch the rock at Goliath. Biting his lower lip and furrowing his eyebrows, David’s face is saturated with tension. He carries a pouch for the rock, and wears a cloth draped around his waist. David’s muscles appear anatomically accurate with muscles flexed emphasizing the tension.
Caught in a moment of tension, Bernini’s David evokes feelings of uncertainty and power. Unlike prior sculptures which capture a moment of victory, Bernini captures the dynamic moment before victory [2]. The viewer almost roots for David to follow through with his throw and defeat Goliath.
Given the composition of the piece, the viewer takes the position of a bystander of the fight between David and Goliath. Rotated around the central point of his abdomen and looking over his pulled forward shoulder, the viewer feels adjacent to the fight, trapped in the events to unfold.
Bernini’s decision to capture a moment of tension and motion in his sculpture demonstrates his ability to break norms surrounding a medium. While sculptures were traditionally used as a medium to express pose and stillness, Bernini embraces motion [3]. His choice to make the viewer an active bystander watching a scene unfold contrasts the typical role of the viewer as a passive observer and admirer - it instead mirrors the motion captured in paintings during the Baroque and Renaissance periods. Through an analysis of Rubens painting of David and Michelangelo’s sculpture, an understanding of Bernini’s command of medium can be fleshed out. With David, Bernini uses sculpture as a mechanism to depict a moment typically constrained to paintings. This demonstrates his ability to think outside the constraints set for media and unit visual art under the theme of capturing moments.
[1] “David .” Galerie Borghèse. Galleria Borghese, July 28, 2021. https://borghese.gallery/collection/sculpture/david.html.
[2] Harris, Beth, and Steven Zucker. “Bernini's David.” Lumen. Accessed December 2, 2021. https://courses.lumenlearning.com/zeliart102/chapter/berninis-david/.
[3] Warwick, Genevieve. “Bernini (1598–1680): Sculpting Sainthood.” Studies: An Irish Quarterly Review 104, no. 416 (2015): 444–55. http://www.jstor.org/stable/24640794.
Creator
Gian Lorenzo Bernini
Source
“David .” Galerie Borghèse. Galleria Borghese, July 28, 2021. https://borghese.gallery/collection/sculpture/david.html.
Harris, Beth, and Steven Zucker. “Bernini's David.” Lumen. Accessed December 2, 2021. https://courses.lumenlearning.com/zeliart102/chapter/berninis-david/.
Harris, Beth, and Steven Zucker. “Bernini's David.” Lumen. Accessed December 2, 2021. https://courses.lumenlearning.com/zeliart102/chapter/berninis-david/.
Publisher
Borghese Gallery
Date
1623-1624
Contributor
Meena Gudapati
Format
170 cm
Type
Sculpture
Coverage
Galleria Borghese, Rome, Italy
Files
Citation
Gian Lorenzo Bernini, “David,” ARTHIST 256 - Italian Baroque Art - Fall 2021, accessed October 22, 2026, https://baroque.dahvc.org/fall-2021/items/show/320.