Art or Porn? A Closer Look at Michelangelo’s ‘David,’ the Sculpture Behind the Florida Charter School Controversy

BY HOWARD HALLE
April 13, 2023 12:26pm
Michelangelo, David, 1501–04.

A charter school in Tallahassee, Florida, recently made the news after parents complained about the inclusion of a sculpture by Italian Renaissance artist Michelangelo in a sixth-grade art-history course. As a result, in late March the school’s principal resigned from an institution that is, ironically, dedicated to classical education.
The sculpture depicts the biblical David holding the sling with which he will kill Goliath. At issue here was its heroic full frontality, which unapologetically exposes David’s family jewels. (The Florentine museum that houses the statue, one of the most famous and admired artworks in the world, has invited the school’s students and their parents to come view the work in person; Florence’s mayor has extended a similar invite to the former principal.)