Young Slave
This article includes a improve this article by introducing more precise citations. (August 2014) ) |
Young Slave | |
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Italian: Schiavo giovane | |
Firenze | |
Preceded by | Dying Slave |
Followed by | Atlas Slave |
The Young Slave (
History
It seems that from the first version of the tomb of Julius II (1505) a series of "Prigioni" was planned for the lowest level of the mausoleum – a series of more-than-life-size statues of chained figures in various poses, leaning on the pilasters which framed a set of niches, each of which would contain a "winged Victory". With one on each side of each niche, it must have been initially intended for there to be sixteen or twenty Prigioni. In the course of the reductions of the project which followed, this was reduced to twelve (second project, 1513), eight (third project, 1516) and finally perhaps a mere four (fourth or fifth version, 1526 or 1532), before they were completely eliminated from the project in 1542. According to de Tolnay (1951, 1954) the Young Slave was intended for the space left of the central niche in the project of 1516.
The first examples of the series are the two Prigioni of Paris, which are mentioned in Michelangelo's letters and were named the "Slaves" (Schiavi) in the 19th century: the Dying Slave and the Rebellious Slave. They were sculpted in Rome around 1513.
The Florentine Prigioni (The Young Slave, the
Regarding the date of their creation, Justi (and others) have proposed 1519 on the basis of a letter of 13 February in which
A wax bozzetto of the work at the Victoria and Albert Museum in London is generally considered to have been made by Michelangelo himself.
Description and style
The Young Slave has slightly bent knees as if bearing an enormous force bearing down his back. His left arm is raised to cover his face and his right arm is behind his back, held by a chain which is not visible. The figure is among the most complete of the group and shows clear definition in his legs, torso (especially on the left hand side) and his arms. His hands and head are less worked, while the back is completely unsculpted. The whole surface gives clear traces of the chisels and scrapers used in the sculpting process.
Because of its unfinished state it has an extraordinary energy (already noted by Bocchi in 1591), which connects the figure to some kind of primordial act of liberation from its prison of crude stone – an epic battle with chaos. The meaning of the Prigioni was probably linked to the motif of the Captivi in Roman art. In fact,
Bibliography
- Umberto Baldini, Michelangelo scultore, Rizzoli, Milano 1973.
- Marta Alvarez Gonzáles, Michelangelo, Mondadori Arte, Milano 2007. ISBN 978-88-370-6434-1
- AA.VV., Galleria dell'Accademia, Giunti, Firenze 1999. ISBN 88-09-04880-6
See also
- Tomb of Julius II
- List of works by Michelangelo
External links
- Entry in the Uffizi/Accademia catalogue
- Media related to Young slave by Michelangelo at Wikimedia Commons