David with the Head of Goliath
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Michelangelo Caravaggio, born in Milan, mastered painting biblical stories in a dark and violent light [1]. Caravaggio created David with the Head of Goliath for Scipione Borghese, an Italian cardinal, as a way of asking for forgiveness for murdering Tomassoni in a duel in 1606 [2]. He created the painting as a form of repentance, begging the cardinal to forgive his sins [3].
Caravaggio depicts the classic Old Testament story of David's triumph over Goliath. He paints David holding the head of Goliath against a dark background. He looks down on the head with a sense of remorse consuming him as his face expresses shame. The source of light comes from the side as if a spotlight is hitting the figures. This in turn creates a dramatic effect as it pulls the viewer’s attention solely to David and Goliath’s head. Caravaggio utilizes a dark background to ensure that all of the focus is put on the characters. He uses a neutral color palette, with the clothes loosely hanging from David’s body painted with light colors, not overpowering the scene. The painting is composed using diagonal lines which effectively narrates this biblical story as the viewer reads the artpiece starting from David's face in the top left corner all the way down to Goliath’s head on the bottom right.
It is said that Goliath’s head is a self-portrait of Caravaggio, representing his guilt for the crimes he committed [4]. He illustrates this scene in a dramatic and realistic light, rather than the typical heroic narrative. He depicts David as remorseful, highlighting the Christian idea that murder is a sin regardless. The story of David defeating Goliath represents Christian triumph over evil, yet Caravaggio takes a deeper look into this dichotomy of hero versus villain, providing the perspective that maybe David is not the hero he is made out to be in the Bible. Through David with the Head of Goliath, he visualizes the idea that David is still a sinner by killing his opponent, paralleling with his guilt for killing Tomassoni. Caravaggio created the painting with the purpose of underscoring Christian morality and the relationship between sin and remorse while also retelling and illustrating this Biblical story.
[1] “David with the Head of Goliath by Caravaggio,” Borghese Gallery, Accessed August 2, 2019, https://borghese.gallery/collection/paintings/david-with-the-head-of-goliath.html.
[2] “David with the Head of Goliath,” Galleria Borghese, Accessed November 12, 2020, https://galleriaborghese.beniculturali.it/en/opere/david-with-the-head-of-goliath/.
[3] “Caravaggio: Naples, Malta, Sicily, Naples, Porto Ercole: 1606–10,” Encyclopædia Britannica, Accessed November 12, 2020, https://www.britannica.com/biography/Caravaggio/Naples-Malta-Sicily-Naples-Porto-Ercole-1606-10.
[4] Amelia Arenas, "Sex, Violence and Faith: The Art of Caravaggio," Arion: A Journal of Humanities and the Classics 23, no. 3 (2016): 40
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Arenas, Amelia. "Sex, Violence and Faith: The Art of Caravaggio." Arion: A Journal of Humanities and the Classics 23, no. 3 (2016): 35-52.
“Caravaggio: Naples, Malta, Sicily, Naples, Porto Ercole: 1606–10.” Encyclopædia Britannica. Encyclopædia Britannica, inc. Accessed November 12, 2020. https://www.britannica.com/biography/Caravaggio/Naples-Malta-Sicily-Naples-Porto-Ercole-1606-10.
“David with the Head of Goliath.” Galleria Borghese. Accessed November 12, 2020. https://galleriaborghese.beniculturali.it/en/opere/david-with-the-head-of-goliath/.
“David with the Head of Goliath by Caravaggio.” Borghese Gallery. August 2, 2019. https://borghese.gallery/collection/paintings/david-with-the-head-of-goliath.html.
D’Errico, Lucia. "Derivative VII: How to Produce a Phantasm? Part I: Gian Lorenzo Bernini." In Powers of Divergence: An Experimental Approach to Music Performance, 88-92. Leuven (Belgium): Leuven University Press, 2018.
Image Source: Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio. c. 1609-10. David with the Head of Goliath. painting. Place: Galleria Borghese. https://library.artstor.org/asset/SCALA_ARCHIVES_1039488548.
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Image Source: Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio. c. 1609-10. David with the Head of Goliath. painting. Place: Galleria Borghese. https://library.artstor.org/asset/SCALA_ARCHIVES_1039488548.
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