Dating David

Have you ever heard the story of Pygmalion? Its about this master sculptor who absolutely hates women. He thinks they are evil, filthy, and the downfall of man. He decides one day that he is going to make a sculpture of a woman without any of these
flaws because he wants to prove that it is possible for a woman to not be any of these things. Or maybe he just wanted to prove to himself that he wasn't gay? He creates a sculpture so astoundingly beautiful that he falls hopelessly in love with it. He pretends to feed the sculpture, gives it gifts, and even kisses it. Aphrodite, the goddess of Love, takes pity on the man eventually after his desperate pleas to her for help and she makes the statue come to life. I'm no Pygmalion, but I can totally relate to him because I'm dating a sculpture, too.

Michelangelo's David is the protector of Florence. He is said to be the thing that has kept Florence so wealthy and so influential for all these years. David brings good luck to this city. And he is my boyfriend. I figured, since I'm not going to date a live Florentine, why not date their most famous sculpture? The relationship has actually been a good one. I visit him in the Piazzalle Michelangelo maybe twice a week and see him briefly everyday in the Piazza Signorina. But I've never gone to David's home: The Accademia. I've been here for a really long time and haven't had the courage (or time) to make it there. What would his family think of me? :-/ I finally went, and let me tell you something. David, when he stands in his home, the real, true David, the David who was made by the gifted hands of Michelangelo, is more beautiful than those copies that stand around the city. He is, in every sense of the word, a marvel.

Okay, seriouly now, going to the Accademia was awesome. Not only are Michelangelo's Prisoners housed there, but also his unfinished Pieta. I'm someting of a Michelangelo addict and seeing those works he could never complete made me slightly giddy and extremely satisfied. There were alot of paintings in the gallery, none of them really that important. Renaissance paintings start to all look the same after, oh I don't know, the thousandth Madonna and Child or Crucifixion. Casalinga, who came with me, noticed on one of the paintings a funny ghost-hand though and it was fun trying to think of Davinci Code reasons for the image. The truth is the guy probably just forgot to fix a mistake. There was a magnificent museum off to the side with the Medici family's personal musical instrument collection, which was a wonder to see. There were pianos and lyres and violins and it was a gorgeous collection. Another room was filled with busts and sculptures, all practice work, of various Renaissance artists. Pretty boring. Too much marble and plaster really hurts a person's eyes after a while.

The most important thing about the Accademia is definitely David. The detail on this thing is seriously amazing. I can't imagine that it only took old Uncle Mike 2 years to finish such a masterpiece. Who care if David is horribly disfigured? (His proportions are super inaccurate). All that matters is that when in Florence, you see the real David. It is the single most spectacular thing I've seen so far. Plus, being able to see your boyfriend naked in his own house rather than outside makes the relationship a little more intimate.
Well, Arrivederci, for now.
Love, Gabby
repubiic.