The Mayor of Florence invites the Principal from Florida to Florence to present her with an award on behalf of the city.
Michelangelo’s David in FlorenceYAY Images/imago
“The Romans are crazy” is Obelix’s favorite saying, and now, transposed to “Americans are crazy,” it could become the favorite saying of the people of Florence. In the United States, a school principal lost her job after studying Michelangelo’s “David” statue in art class. The accusation: You have expected the children to display pornographic content. In fact, David is naked, not even a tiny fig leaf covers anything here.
Normally, parents would be notified in advance if their children would be exposed to controversial topics in class at Tallahassee Classical School in Florida, the school’s board chairman, Barney Bishop, told Slate magazine in an interview. This also applies if they see an illustration of Michelangelo’s “David” in art class, one of the most famous sculptures in the world. Michelangelo created it between 1501 and 1504, it is the main attraction of the Galleria dell’Accademia in Florence, a replica is on the Piazza Signoria in front of the Palazzo Vecchio.
The trigger warning for Michelangelo’s “David” was forgotten this time
But the trigger warning to the parents was probably forgotten this time, according to Barney Bishop. Parents protested, spoke of pornography. The headmistress was given the choice of either leaving voluntarily or being fired. Anyway, she lost her job.
The news reached as far as Italy. For the mayor of Florence, the school principal from Florida is a heroine who defends occidental culture. Dario Nardella announced that he would invite the dismissed headmistress to Florence to personally admire the “David” statue in the Accademia Gallery with her. He wrote on Facebook: “Confusing art with pornography is just ridiculous. I will personally invite the teacher to Florence to present her with an award on behalf of the city. Art is civilization and those who teach it deserve respect.”
The director of the Galleria dell’Accademia, German-born Cecilie Hollberg, also commented on the incident: “To think that the ‘David’ could be pornographic is to disregard the content of the Bible, Western culture and Renaissance art understand,” she told the AP news agency.