David and Goliath: Endgame

     For my last blog, I decided to analyze Michaelangelo's David. This sculpture depicted the beginning of the story with David readying himself to go face Goliath. For this week's Baroque assessment, I decided to analyze Caravaggio's David with the Head of Goliath. 

 

David with the Head of Goliath by Caravaggio

Galleria Borghese, c. 1610

   Emotions and Backstory

    

    There is a ton of play with lighting and color in this oil on canvas. The background of the painting is all black, with the right side of David's body and left side of his face being heavily shaded. The colors used are not vibrant, they are mute and earth toned colors. The colors serve to establish the tone of the painting. This is the depiction of a serious and somber event. The lighting is further used to push this narrative, the shadows around David's face give him a sad, but determined, expression. David's right hand is almost completely hidden in shadows except for the blade which provides a sharp contrast, this, alongside David's expression, seem to indicate that David had been reluctant to use lethal force against Goliath and seemed perturbed to have let it come to this point. 

    When I look at this painting, I do not see a victory. It does not depict David standing over Goliath in a victorious pose, expression grinning and accomplished. When I look at this painting, I see a boy who had done what needed to be done for the sake of others, but he took no joy in the action. 

    An interesting tidbit of information related to this piece is that it was painted as a gift to Cardinal Scipione Borghese. Now, this isn't too out of the ordinary, it was not uncommon for the church to commission artists but what is interesting is that Cardinal Borghese happened to be the papal official with the power to grant Caravaggio a pardon for murder. I believe that this played a key role in how Caravaggio decided to draw this painting. This is why Caravaggio didn't depict David jubilant, he didn't want the Cardinal to believe that he thought killing was something to be rejoiced. Instead, he depicted David as pensive and sorrowful, showing that there is no joy in killing, there is only regret. 

Caravaggio and the Council of Trent

    The Council of Trent was a council made up of the Catholic Church with the original goal of countering the Protestant Reformation. They set out to change the people's idea of the Church and to make themselves the "good guys" one of the ways they decided to accomplished this was by restoring the people's faith through artwork. Art was the perfect way for the Catholic Church to relate to the populace, it was accessible and could be understood by everyone and anyone, even those who lacked a formal education. Caravaggio's art was heavily influenced by the Catholic Church, his art is straightforward and realistic. His paintings are was natural and real, it was rarely romanticized and was always straightforward, exactly what the Catholic Church was looking for. This is seen in Caravaggio's David with the Head of Goliath, the painting looks real and natural, David looks relatable and reachable in the painting, just what the Catholic Church wanted at the time. 

David with the Head of Goliath and David

    For our Renaissance assignment, I looked at Michaelangelo's David sculpture, and wanted to compare that to this week's Caravaggio's painting. 

 

Michaelangelo's David

Florence, c. 1504

    Both depict David, but the similarities arguably end there. Michaelangelo sculpted an Adonis like man, standing tall and gallant, determined to take down the menace that was Goliath. This depiction of David seems unrelatable, it seems like one should strive to be this version of David, but it is a version that no one will ever be able to attain. Caravaggio's depiction of David depicts a young, almost scrawny David. This David has killed Goliath, and while Michaelangelo's David would have probably been overjoyed and proud of his achievement, Caravaggio's David looks at Goliath with pity and resentment at what he had done. This David looks much more human and relatable.

Works Cited

“Council of Trent.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 20 Feb. 2021, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Council_of_Trent.

“David (Michelangelo).” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 29 Dec. 2020, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_(Michelangelo).

“David with the Head of Goliath (Caravaggio, Rome).” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 15 Dec. 2020, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_with_the_Head_of_Goliath_(Caravaggio,_Rome).