The Black David

Michelangelo Buonarroti's original David, carved out of a "17-foot piece of marble," [1] stands inside the Galleria dell’Accademia in Florence, Italy. [2]  "A life-size copy of Michelangelo's David in Carrara marble painted in black and lying down was unveiled Friday [(July 15, 2016)] in Florence's central Piazza della Repubblica to symbolize the suffering caused by terror and violence worldwide. ...[T]he statue, called Noi ('Us' in Italian)...will remain on display until July 21, to coincide with Michelangelo Week concerts and exhibitions dedicated to the artist." [3]

Noi's photograph, with all rights reserved to ANSA, and part of Google's bank of images, is reproduced here:



To see Michelangelo's David, even though it is a copy, placed in a supine position, suggesting the death of God's rare and exceptional creation's creation that has for generations reminded the whole of humanity the beauty of man (inside and out) God had intended Adam and Eve to have, is sad and emotionally evocative, notwithstanding the exceptional artistic talents in Florence who worked on it.

Art such as this, antipodal to comic strips that mock religion, is heavenly.  It elevates the deterioration of the good of humanity to a tragic level that anyone with a heart and a conscience can understand.  It becomes a prayer that inspires people to return to the good, as opposed to a curse that fuels prejudice and hatred.

Where Noi will be displayed after July 21, if it is going to be displayed at all, is not known.  Perhaps it can be protected by a transparent bullet-proof enclosure and placed in the middle of Rome's Colosseum.


[1] http://www.biography.com/people/michelangelo-9407628#the-pieta-and-the-david
[2] http://www.accademia.org/
[3] http://www.ansa.it/english/news/lifestyle/arts/2016/07/15/black-david-unveiled-in-florence_0930e1dc-9c83-4a33-8055-1a73b46d199a.html