The 1:1 replica of Michelangelo’s David has been a project jointly promoted by the Italian General Commissioner’s Office for Expo 2020 Dubai, the Galleria dell’Accademia Museum of Florence and the Ministry of Culture in partnership with the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at the University of Florence.
The making off of this astonishing masterpiece and the final result has been a perfect marriage between ancient beauty, sophisticated technologies (digitalization and 3d print) and high-skilled handicraft.
O.T.I.M. team, your Pangea partner in Italy, has been at the forefront of the project since the very beginning and has taken care of handling, forwarding and the installation of this incredible artwork.
With its approximately 6 meters height and 2 meters width, the 1:1 replica of Michelangelo’s David started its journey from Florence to the next EXPO in Dubai. First steps were completed in Florence in mid April, with the involvement of 12 people, two trucks and a crane for securing, handling, laying down, packing and loading operations. They took almost 6 to 8 hours to harness and secure the art piece, to lift it and put it in horizontal position and get ready to start packing. All the moves had to be performed in strict silence to allow “listening” the art piece itself to the various solicitations. Not even the restorer who assembled the 3D printed pieces and refined them with resins and marble powder was aware of all the potential reactions.
The small environment, both indoor and outdoor, in which the O.T.I.M. team had to complete these first phases was another crucial detail. The replica was assembled and refined in a tiny art-workshop and stood in a narrow aisle whose height and width was just a little bit bigger than David’s dimensions. In addition, the statue had to come out of the art-workshop from an ancient portal, in a very narrow street of the historic center of Florence and loaded onto truck with a small crane.
The statue has been laid down on a wooden base and protected by polystyrene templates and polyphrene sheets which have been placed below, above ad around head, chest and legs, and held together with aluminium / steel bars.
The David’s journey then continued to the departure airport where the masterpiece was boarded onto a 747 Cargo aircraft and reached Dubai on April 21st at 5.15 am. With a strong cooperation between the O.T.I.M. team, the local agent, airport authorities, Police and Custom officers, the artwork could be cleared and released in one hour.
O.T.I.M.delivered and installed the replica of David on April. Once uncrated and unpacked the main challenge was to lift the statue in horizontal position; gradually bring it in upright position crossing the 1st floor of the pavilion located at 5 meters height from the ground and using 5 hoists fixed to a 10 meters height-beam; and finally to make it enter in a very tight cylinder delimited by a colonnade. Again coordination, patience and silence were 3 crucial factors.
Finally on April 27th 2021, at Italy Pavilion @Expo2020 Dubai, the 1:1 replica of the Michelangelo’s David statue was unveiled in presence of the Ministers of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation of Italy and UAE. It has been a long and challenging journey and still a long way to The Grand Opening Ceremony of Expo2020 Dubai.
The model is among the most unusual parcels that O.T.I.M. has handled in the last years and for sure the most challenging and recorded!! Italian and international Tv and photographers were ready to catch any moment from Florence to Dubai.
O.T.I.M. is proud to be Official Supporter Sponsor of Italy at Expo2020, Dubai.
Pls. visit https://www.otim.it/en/ for more information.
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