Trip to the Donatello Exhibition at the V&A
Donatello was the first of the great Renaissance sculptors and created the first full sized figure in bronze since the Roman era. To see a large body of his work all in one place is a very rare treat, so a group of us met in London to look round the extensive exhibition at the V&A.
We had a wonderful day, it was beautifully curated and laid out. The thing that struck me was the sensitivity of the artist, less about grand statements and more about depicting humanity in all it’s forms with empathy and understanding.
One of the things that impressed us all the most was the incredible relief carvings he did in Marble. He managed to achieve so much depth and detail using only a few millimetres of stone, we stood and stared at them in awe.
Stone carvers on a school trip
Angels carved from marble contemporary with Donatello
Bronze high relief
Donatello detail of low relief carving
Donatello low relief marble carving
Huge head made from thin sheet gold, beautifully displayed
