Adam's The Irish Library Wednesday 17th April 2019

163 www.adams.ie The Irish Library| 17th April 2019 209 AN 18TH CENTURY NEAPOLITAN CAST TERRACOTTA POLYCHROME FIGURE OF DAVID standing with attendant lion. 57cm tall € 2,000 - 3,000 The versatility of terracotta as a sculptural ma- terial has been explored by Italian artists since the early 15th century. Initially in the hands of the master Florentine sculptor Donatello and his contemporaries who established terracot- ta as highly sought-after material for artistic expression and creativity. This continued until the age of Antonio Canova in the late 18th and early 19th centuries when an increasing interest in neo-classical traditions created a preponder- ance for the purity of marble. Ironically artists and historians alike in the 19th century were entirely wrong about the beloved ‘whiteness’ of classical marble sculptures. As we now know, these busts and full-scale statu- ary would in fact have been coloured. The poly- chrome nature of terracotta is closer in many senses to its brightly coloured ancestors. Terra- cotta was often used as a substitute for marble or bronze, especially outside central Italy where there were no available marble quarries. As a ȵH[LEOH DQG YHUVDWLOH PHGLXP LW FRXOG ULYDO SDLQW - ing in its exploitation of colour and movement to FUHDWH FUHGLEOH ȴJXUHV ΖQ SDUWLFXODU LQ WKH IDFLDO expressions of its subjects, the ability to give life to their skin, to draw the colour of their eyes and lips. :KLOH WHUUDFRWWD PD\ KDYH KDG WKH EHQHȴW RI colour, as an immobile statue the artist needed to create a sense of realistic movement in the ȴJXUH :LWK WKH /LRQ RI -XGDK DW KLV IHHW 'DYLG stands in the classical contrapposto pose and by turning towards us, the sculptor has created a sense of motion, clasping the rock to his chest as if he is about to cast the devastating fatal blow. +H LV LGHQWLȴHG WR XV DV 'DYLG E\ WKH VWRQH in his left hand. Goliath, as in most sculptural representations of the parable is not depicted. Instead it is the triumph of David and the glory that his victory bestowed upon the people of Israel. Clothed in a simple robe, without armour or shield, the sculptor is able to capture the strength and bravery of David to overcome the philistine giant.