Alecia Coutain Dr.

Engen, Neal, Galleno JBIP: Italy Tour 05 April 2012 Accademia Imagine yourself living in a depressing time period known as the middle ages, a period of ubiquitous ignorance and disease. The combination of the two brought about intense barbaric behavior of many Europeans and the European economy was on its way to a rapid decline. On the contrary, imagine yourself in one of the biggest periods in European civilization known as the Renaissance which dates from 1400-1600 A.D. After drastic and cultural decline in the middle ages, it was time to reinvent European culture as a whole and give birth to new ways of thinking, expression of ideas, thoughts, and values. The origins of the Renaissance are traced to the beautiful nation of Italy. In various parts of Italy, there was a huge economic boom due to their main economic industryart. Because Italians thought of art as a sport, many wealthy patrons, merchants, and parts of the government made great efforts to see great art as being created by giving large amounts of money to talented artists. Florence was a city that took their art very seriously, and wanted the art to be a reflection of the citys wealth and pride. In the middle of the 16th century, three artists named Vassari, Bronzoni, and Ammanti, founded the Accademia del Designo( Academy of Design) which is known today as the Galleria dellAccademia (Visit Florence). This was the first drawing academy in Europe and,it became a general academy of arts and was christened Accademy di Belle Arti (Academy of Beautiful Art) (Visit Florence).

In 1784, the Grand Duke Pierto Leoplodo wanted all the schools of drawing to be in one central location, so he combined the Accademy di Belle Arti with the adjoining galleria to be called Galleria dellAccademia. The goal of the Grand Duke was to have mostly Florentine sculptures and paintings, so that the students could study the best work, and in turn, produce bigger and better works of art. The greatest piece of work that stands in the Galleria dellAccademia is the original David by Michelangelo. This beautiful statue was moved from the Piazza della Signoria to the Galleria in 1873 in order to preserve the statue (Gallerie dellAccademia). On August 6, 1501, after the reestablishment of the republic in Florence, Michelangelo was commissioned to make a sculpture which became known today as David (Michelangelo Gallery). Michelangelo was known for creating beautiful works of art, so the Florentine people had great hopes that he would produce yet another masterpiece. He was given a 19 ft tall piece of marble and he began going to work on David. Michelangelo illegally dug up cadavers to study the intense and intricate human body, and this work of art is known for its humanistic qualities and its extreme resemblance to the human body. This statue is different from any other statues of David because it depicts him as a young adult that is prepared, yet a little nervous for battle (Michael Gallery). Marble is a hard medium to work with, yet Michelangelo was able to produce a breathtaking statue that stands 17 ft tall and displays great details such as an athletic build, individual curls of hair, and veins. David is Florences prize possession because the statue is the pinnacle of Florentine pride and, it *David+ symbolizes the virtues of the Florentine Republic, freedom from foreign and papal domination, as well as the artistic and intellectual ambitions of the Renaissance( Gallerie dellAccademia). Even though David is known as one of the best pieces of work in history, it was known that Michelangelo was unpleased with this work. This says a lot for people that did not have the technology and manpower that we have available today. This famous museum also includes other works by Michelangelo including unfinished prisoners and the

unfinished statue of St. Matthew. In addition to Michelangelos works, there are other famous works by various artists such as Paolo, Botticelli, and Giambologna.

References History. GalleriaDellAccademia. Web. 28. Jan. 2012. <http://www.tickitaly.com/galleries/accademia.php> Michaelangelos Gallery. Michaelangelos Gallery. Web. 31.March. 2012 <http://www.michelangelo-gallery.com/david.aspx> WebPromoter. GalleriaDellAccademia. VisitFlorence. 2010-2012. Web. 28.Jan.2012 http://www.visitflorence.com/florence-museums/accademia-gallery.htm.