David and Goliath 17th century

Curator: Talk about a David and Goliath scenario playing out! Here we have Francesco Fanelli’s bronze sculpture from the 17th century, currently housed in the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Editor: The bronze lends it this incredible gravity. Visually, the immediate feeling is brutal, right? All that power dynamics solidified, literally, in the metal. You feel the weight of that moment, victory, yet it is far away from the biblical stories of heroism and divinity. It looks more cruel, personal... Curator: Precisely, you sense something deeply psychological in this piece. Notice the symbols Fanelli employs. David is, rather shockingly, literally standing on Goliath—the embodiment of triumph, but expressed through this domination. In older iconography, we used to see David holding Goliath's head, as a sort of divine triumph over evil. Now it feels different... Editor: So, the shift from David holding the head to him actively standing shows, almost like rubbing it in is interesting. Makes you think about that old adage, "the victors write history" ... And Goliath's pose! Curator: He is almost fetal. Absolutely defeated. The torque in his body expresses, in my reading, a complete loss of dignity. Now it feels as the young shepherd doesn´t bring victory in God's name. Editor: It reminds me of my last trip to Rome— all of those Baroque masterpieces focusing on drama, raw emotion. It's meant to stir you, maybe unsettle you a bit, unlike that renaissance obsession with harmony and proportions... Even though the decorative aspect of Fanelli can´t be avoided, right? Curator: Absolutely. But the emotional weight is, as you said, there, undeniable. I wonder what Fanelli was truly exploring in the representation of those old stories... Power? Maybe it’s simply human nature on display? Editor: Right, is that narrative that gives you that little kick and dark satisfaction when someone smaller is finally prevailing, or getting even? The play is superb! Thank you for opening my eyes! Curator: It’s fascinating how bronze, an age-old material, still holds the power to bring these archetypes alive, to stir things deep within our collective memories. Glad to be in good company here.