‘Habbakuk’ by Donatello, 1427 (Religious Sculpture in Florence)

when was it sculpted?

1427

commissioned by…

the wool guild

it was to be placed…

on the facade of the bell tower or (The Duomo or the Florence Cathedral has a campanile (bell tower) designed by Giotto)

Donatello was asked to produce…

five sculptures in the same commission

To make the sculptures visible from so high up he…

• Applies optical compensation through making them expressive

• Leaning forward slightly over the side of the building to be seen below

• Sizing deeply into the marble to show big sculptural folds using a bow drill (used in antiquity)

• He produced the sculptures in white marble in darker niches (the areas the sculpture stands in)

Habakkuk is an…

old testament prophet that isn’t mentioned regularly in the Bible

many people didn’t know who Habakkuk was, therefore it…

gave Donatello more creative freedom

Donatello has carved…

his name into the base of the sculpture, this disregards Baxandall’s ideas of craftsmanship, he gives himself credit and puts his name to the work

Habakkuk shows Donatello’s influences from Rome as…

he is given to use like a Roman orator, he stands mouth open, communicating with us, the viewer

He wears…

Greco-Roman attire

what makes the sculpture dynamic and life-like?

The confident stance and relaxed pose versus the tension and restrained pose

The usual castings of heads from antiquity were made from…

death masks, this meant the hyper-realism was there, but the life and dynamism of the person isn’t, Donatello gives the sculpture an inner personality, he looks alert and vital

He is in contrapposto, yet he is…

tense, his arms are pulled back, he exudes inner tension through arms and weight of drapery

Suggestion of taught…

tendons and muscles even on his back are emphasised as well as the twist of his neck, and the pull of the tendons as her turns

describe his expression

Intense expression, outwards and upwards, raised eyebrows, eyes are open and alert, mouth open teeth showing slightly

There is a slight …. shown

vulnerablity

Bartolomeo Facio, in 1456, said…

“Donatello can make people’s faces come to life, and in this he comes closer to the glory of the ancient masters”

Vasari says that Donatello worked on Habakkuk for…

8 years

Vasari said that Donatello called him…

“Zuccone”