For over 500 years, Michelangelo’s sculpture of David in Florence has remained unchanged, the marble icon of masculinity and one of the most famous works of art in the world.
But as Italy emerges from the pandemic, Davi has a whole new look. A new lighting system has revolutionized the appearance of the famous statue, with small details visible for the first time in its history.
“A few days ago, I noticed muscles on my body that I had never seen before,” says Lucia Lazic, a guide who visits the Accademia Gallery most days.
“I said, ‘What the hell? How have I never seen this?” The lighting is much better on Davi.”
Cecilie Hollberg, director of the Academy, said in a statement that the lighting “changed the visual perception of artworks”, telling the CNN that David’s marble appears “whiter” and that the details are “more visible.”
The lighting – completed in September as part of the works that opened this week – was intended to bring “sunshine dynamism” into the Tribune room, where the statue is held under a domed skylight.
Sculpture of David before the new enlightenment
Sculpture after the new lighting
LED spotlights were installed in a circle above the statue, allowing them to “completely surround Davi and leave the rest of the space in the background”.
The color of the light changes imperceptibly during the day, while the spotlights are of varying heat, allowing visitors to gain a new perspective with every step around the statue.
“You can see all chisel marks”
Davi’s new look is part of a wider overhaul of the museum, which was Italy’s second most visited in 2019.
The Galleria dei Prigioni, or “prisoners’ corridor” – named in honor of Michelangelo’s four half-finished prisoner-of-war sculptures that share the space with two of his other works – has also had its lighting changed, with several spotlights aimed at it. each sculpture.
“Before, prisoners looked yellow and David was white. Now they are the same color,” Hollberg said. “Now you can see all the chisel marks on them.”
The new lighting system, which “restores the right chiaroscuro balance and gives color to the works”, is also energy efficient. Hollberg says the gallery is expected to use about 80% less electricity than in previous years.
Additionally, several of the other rooms in the gallery have had their formerly beige walls painted in colors that maximize those of the paintings.
The Sala del Colosso, the gallery’s first room, is now a vibrant blue, while the 13th and 14th century rooms were painted in pale green, chosen to highlight the gold used in most of the paintings.
And new lighting everywhere has transformed the paintings that tourists used to pass unnoticed on their way to David, making them unmissable.
“A regular visitor said, ‘Where were all these details? We had never seen it before,” Hollberg told CNN . “In a painting by Domenico Ghirlandaio you can now see all the golden dots on the halos [dos santos]. Before, the beige walls erased the gold. In another, it looks like you could pull the pearls out of the painting, which before you couldn’t even see them.”
“My job is to give value and visibility to all works. Each work here is a masterpiece, but the works die on a beige background, they need to be lifted and supported by color. I want to give them what they deserve.”
Colosso Room before
Colosso Room after
Behavior change
In the old days, the lighting was so bad that some paintings were barely visible – like the ones next to the David sculpture. “Before, everything was dark, you couldn’t see them, nobody stopped at them,” Hollberg said. She once saw a guide illuminating another painting with his flashlight to show it to visitors.
Tourists have already changed their behavior, she said. “Now they stop and look. They’re not all in front of David like they used to be. I’ve followed groups, and they cut through the Sala del Colosso and never stopped. Now I see that room full of visitors – it’s redistributing the crowds.”
Lazic, guide for the Elite Italian Experience, agrees: “There are more people stopping at Sala del Colosso.”
The renovations, which began shortly before the pandemic and were delivered this year, ended with the refurbishment of the Gipsoteca. The plaster gallery was another passageway. That’s if it was open – no windows open or air conditioning, it used to close at noon during the summer.
But now with air conditioning, blue walls and a new layout for the 414 plaster casts – made primarily by sculptor Lorenzo Bartolini, whose works are found in the Louvre, Amsterdam’s Rijksmuseum and the Metropolitan Museum of Art – it’s a place to stay.
Hollberg says residents are starting to appreciate the museum, too. “It used to be a space for tourists, but Florentines are rediscovering it. We managed to bring in the last resisters with a series of concerts”.
Dario Franceschini, Italy’s minister of culture, called the reopening of the Gipsoteca “an important step towards bringing [a Accademia] for the 21st century”.
He added: “Works throughout the building have enabled significant innovations in systems, transforming a museum conceived in the late 19th century into a modern site without distorting it.”
Source: CNN Brasil
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