Carved by the Italian sculptor Donatello over a decade within the fifteenth century, the marble reliefs on the surface pulpit of Prato Cathedral in Tuscany are celebrated for his or her wealthy, emotive depiction of dancing cherubic figures set in stone. On this brief video from the Victoria and Albert Museum in London, the UK sculptor Simon Smith talks the viewers by way of his means of recreating these reliefs for the exhibition Donatello: Sculpting the Renaissance, on show on the museum from February to June 2023. Beginning with a pencil sketch earlier than working with a collection of ever-finer instruments to ‘nibble away’ on the stone, Smith provides an immensely satisfying glimpse into how one among historical past’s nice sculptors created dazzling, emotive scenes from simply stone, shadow and lightweight.
