Florida controversy over ‘David’ statue prompts response from Italy

The Florence museum housing Michelangelo’s Renaissance masterpiece, the “David” sculpture, has invited students from a Florida charter school after complaints about the display of the statue forced the principal of the school to resign. Some parents complained that the frontal nudity of the statue exposed their children to pornography, prompting others to defend it as simply a work of art.

Completed between 1501 and 1504, Michelangelo’s “David” was instantly hailed as a masterpiece for its time. Renaissance artist Giorgio Vasari said the “David” “surpassed” any statue that had ever existed before.

This recent drama in Florida prompted a response from the mayor of Florence, Italy, who argued that mistaking art for pornography is “ridiculous.” In a tweet, Mayor Dario Nardella offered to formally recognize the ousted Florida principal and invited her to come to Florence, writing in part, “Art is civilization, and whoever teaches it deserves respect.”

Meanwhile, the museum that houses Michelangelo’s “David” has invited the principal, school board, parents and student body to view the “purity” of the statue, as reported by The Associated Press.

The museum, like many in Europe, is free for student groups. There was no indication that the city or museum would subsidize any trip.

The situation drew a familiar comparison to episode nine of “The Simpsons’” second season. In it, Marge Simpson went through a similar battle when it came to censoring art for children. The episode first aired on Dec. 20, 1999. In the 34 years that “The Simpsons” has been on the air, the show has created many jokes and storylines which turned out to have some seemingly prophetic real-world resemblance, as reported by Newsweek.

“Simpsons did it! Simpsons did it!” (1990) pic.twitter.com/Ut4Z1CQb9m

— DISSney (@DISSneyFeuds) March 23, 2023

Speaking about the resignation of the principal to Slate Magazine, the chair of the the Tallahassee Classical School, Barney Bishop III, said that last year the principal sent a notice to parents warning them that students were going to see Michelangelo’s “David,” but that wasn’t done this year. Bishop called it an “egregious mistake” and said that “parents are entitled to know anytime their child is being taught a controversial topic and picture.”