How was it made? Donatello's marble carving technique | V&A

[@celinesm7382]

I could listen to Simon talk about his art and his craft for ever! What a beautiful process. The phrase 'carving is essentially trapping shadows' will stay with me!

[@ronlaswell1542]

That's why speaking is so important. Not everyone knows how to put their thoughts into words. Just like explaining your emotions to another, do they understand, can they comprehend? To teach another how to explain their feelings is so important to enhance our lives.

[@omicroneridani7456]

I can but concur, a very pleasant and inspirational narrator. That phrase, furthermore, is really an epitome of the art.

[@piccalillipit9211]

Yes that really resonated with me really meant something to me

[@EgoEroTergum]

It is always a wonderful thing, to touch the mind of an artist.

[@philthycat1408]

That sounds messy and extremely dangerous to the artist.

[@Efemral]

Always wash your hands first.

[@forsafetymode]

“Capturing shadow”. Love this so much! More of these, please!

[@vamuseum]

Make sure you're subscribed - we've got something coming up

[@oops1088]

"Trapping" I know, I loved that

[@autodidact537]

@@vamuseumAre there any health problems from the marble dust that a sculptor inhales during the carving process?

[@discardiac]

He does such a good job of describing the process and what goes through his mind. I’d love to see this with other artists, like directors, musicians, etc

[@Nashvillain10SE]

Agreed. Other artists try to be coy or overly-philosophical to hide the actual mechanics of creating their works.

[@flatline-timer]

Beautiful, thank you Simon Smith and Victoria and Albert Museum for sharing this with us!

[@ryanscarola]

My son is 5 and we're learning about art. I showed him this and he thought it was very interesting.

[@Renaissanceman-j3k]

Thank you Victoria and Albert museum another great video Donatello was an incredible and very important sculptor who must not get forgotten

[@joannathinnes491]

Carving is just about trapping the shadow! Incredible!

[@kagame6524]

How wonderful to watch this come to life

[@hakimmalek8317]

1st time watching stone carving . why am i feeling so serene and relax .

[@davidmclean5895]

What a privilege and a blessing to be such a gifted artist, and to know that hundreds of years from now your work will still be admired and appreciated.

[@SueK2001]

I am absolutely in love with sculpture. I always visit the sculpture galleries of museums and spend hours just looking at various pieces and marveling at how artists can bring out a form out of stone. Just sublime.

[@ZephaniahL]

Do you prefer colored, the sort of sculptures the ancient Greeks and Romans made, or bare stone?

[@SueK2001]

@@ZephaniahL I love the bare marble and fully admit that it’s the result of our “modern” sensibilities.

[@ronsmith1364]

"Removing the marks from the previous tool" until it reveals the beauty an artisans skills can create. Best description of carving I have ever heard (the essence of the process explained so well). "Roughing out" takes on a much more nuanced meaning with a Master's insight. Wonderful vlog Please share more.

[@sharonzotoff3975]

I've never seen marble carved before. It's rather a delicate process and really quite beautiful. with one tool erasing the marks of the tool before it.

[@user-pb2kg1ng4g]

What a gift to the world this man and his talent is. If only more people could eke out the gems of their life; whether through painting, music, writing, dance etc. Bravo Simon Smith !

[@KpxUrz5745]

This is quite a good introduction to the tools, process, and work habits for marble carving. The studio looks so authentic, and so does this artist. I have done copies too, but mine are drawings or paintings. And I agree with one point made here, which is that, aside from working to replicate the forms and style of the original, really the most important thing in the end it to somehow capture the "spirit". Successfully doing that can be difficult and elusive, and I must say that only an infinitesimally small percentage of later artists can ever achieve this. There is always a deep or moving spirit conveyed by the best artists in history, and I believe anyone copying such an artwork needs to become so immersed in recognizing that spirit that they can tap into the sensibility and purpose that the original artist must have felt.

[@deansnipah1392]

Sculpting in my opinion is the hardest form of art. There is literally *ZERO* room for error.

[@travismiller5548]

There is though, you just have to be able to let go of the original vision and change your goal. Michaelangelo carved a pieta from a stone another artist had messed up, and considered unworkable.

[@northfield3654]

@@travismiller5548 That was The David

[@RocLobo358]

I've seen some interesting errors in sculpture

[@travismiller5548]

@@northfield3654 no, I mean the Florentine Pieta, "the deposition"

[@northfield3654]

@@travismiller5548 the one Michelangelo didn't complete and destroyed?

[@kilitciali1230]

I enjoyed watching thanks and love from Turkey

[@thenavybluewolf5648]

He does a fantastic job of explaining the process in a way that makes you understand the basics without overwhelming the mind. Makes me want to try my hand at it.

[@CaptPeanutBut]

Really incredible to see this process and what a fabulous teacher.

[@yasemintek9488]

The part at 1:57 where he says “tempered and drawn out by a blacksmith” matched perfectly with the hitting sound is so sayisfying

[@nixi7688]

"Trapping shadows" what a beautiful concept.

[@omicroneridani7456]

That sublte sound made by the chisel, so carefully and proficiently driven onto the marble surface, is sheer and delightful music, to my ears.

[@captaincrunch784]

In the 2012 TMNT Donatello constantly corrected people saying his namesake was a painter. SCULPTOR he would shout!

[@lillotusplays]

what an interview/documentary. skilled carver and communicates very well

[@phatato]

I absolutely love this! I always get put off by the less than ideal level of regard in the art world regarding copies. With music a reinterpretation of an original work is celebrated and thought of this something interesting and worthwhile, whereby in art we seem to have such much obsession with the original and copies are not often celebrated. I think this video shows that it's actually a wonderful thing to reinterpret an original work in any medium.

[@simongregory3114]

Utmost respect for people doing this work, keeping skills alive.

[@R3TR0J4N]

you know how crazy you talk into it was even i had no background in sculpting, your words made me think i can. and by just following these steps wholeheartedly by means of passion of interest

[@princequestly2218]

What a demanding art form, absolutely incredible carving into such hard material with that precision. Truly talented.

[@HobbyOrganist]

Marble is soft and fine, try granite!! granite is extremely hard and unlike the fine grain of marble- granite is very crystaline and course, it's a very difficult stone to carve!

[@chuck-n-debtaylor7553]

What a joy to watch! Thank you ❤

[@jenniferstone2975]

Nothing quite as awe inspiring as the privilege of watching a master at his craft. Beautiful man, beautiful artist.

[@JamesKearyJackson]

I learn something new each time I watch this. Simon you make me want to try this as Donatello is my favorite Early Renaissance sculptor.

[@doogelyjim8627]

Ah I love this video. Very revealing to actually see someone going at the stone like this. Have always wondered about how it is with marble. "how could they make these out of stone?? stone is so hard?" a pointy metal thing and a hammer and going bit by bit by bit. fantastic

[@MrPhotodoc]

Before I ever knew how to draw, I started to carve. I was fascinated by old building brick and how soft it was and easy to work with.

[@eternalme6077]

I find this incredibly interesting, I know nothing of sculpting stone much less marble but I'm simply compelled to start learning. I live on an island so the only plentiful stones or rock are either river stones or lava rock. I'll also have to learn all about the tools of the trade, chisels brushes hammers etc. Anyways I'll be investigating many more videos on this subject, Thank you so much for posting this beauty.......🎸🎸🎸♥️

[@Silveryback]

Fascinating! I've always wondered how such lifelike sculptures were made. Amazing!

[@jennylawson1980]

I could listen and watch this artisans narrative and art form forever. Such an incredible technique and skill. ❤

[@marvogrady9728]

Great work, Simon. Wonderful work, V & A.

[@seearress]

This experienced craftsman speaks so simply but so much experience and lessons learned

[@FValkyrie_17]

He said the drawing is more of a diagram and made THAT DRAWING! Man he is talented and hardworking!

[@cleftoftherock6797]

Incredible. Very rare talent to see. Thank you.

[@TheMattsterling]

What an amazing video showing the talent required to create this piece of art. Thanks for sharing and Simon Smith...you are incredible!

[@toastbread5706]

Breathtaking! 🙏🏻 It is looking fantastic.

[@Kagamishoshi]

marble is such a beautiful material

[@philipplace9990]

Only just discovered this... out of all the arts the skills of a sculptor absolutely astound me! Not gonna lie! I think this is the best "taster" video to get me to find out more about this guy... thoroughly enjoyed how he explained the process, stunning work!

[@alicewalsh2382]

love this … such beautiful craftsmanship

[@antoniog76]

Thanks for posting such awesome content! What an amazing artist he is and I loved the way he explained his process.

[@lrtc99]

Well done V&A! That’s a beautiful film. I wish every piece of art could be given this captivating treatment. 10/10

[@grahameanderson6913]

I had a lot of joy watching this.

[@gaius_enceladus]

Wonderful video! A pity it wasn't longer though - maybe 20 minutes or so! Very relaxing and calming watching him work. A real craftsman!

[@inisipisTV]

I would love a long video of him just carving. No dialogue, just pure chiselling sound.

[@SomeTrader74]

Thank you for keeping the dream alive - real artistry.

[@theaquariancontrarian3316]

It's refreshing to hear a true artist explain things in simple coherent terms versus the so called conceptual artists that spew out a bunch of nonsense trying to explain away an uninspiring useless object.

[@behnamzadeh1936]

he is human hero this is revelations beautiful sacrifice his life for stone marble cutting i couldn't do this work unbelievable

[@jimbobbob9063]

Simply amazing beautiful work. Wonderful craftsmanship

[@agushofblue]

Beautiful allegory on how to be compelling: small nibbles

[@ronniebillhicks]

seems like a genuinely nice human being,........stone carving is def' a medium I haven't tried yet,......but looks so awesome.

[@SuperSavvyTravelersLLC]

This is so amazing! Thank you!

[@markthompson180]

In a world dominated by digital media and increasingly by AI -- I love seeing somebody creating something by hand, and doing it well. Nothing in the world beats hand-made artistry.

[@mathewborden4601]

Amazing. Thank you for sharing. Would love to see more of Simon

[@Vitusvonatzinger]

This is an incredible presentation. If I had seen this as a child it might have changed the direction of my life. I’ll never look at sculpture the same way again.

[@supahfly_uk]

Nothing quite like a pair of skilled human hands.

[@piccalillipit9211]

That was amazing, the way you described it it really meant something to me.

[@williamfahey6066]

Wow! Simon is an amazing Artist. I love watching him. This was the fastest Seven minutes and Thirteen seconds of my life. Thank you for this great video, Jeff

[@alexisburleson]

this is so fascinating!! please give us more videos like this!!

[@RevRedmondFarrier]

I never really though about it before, but carving (especially panel carving) can be though of as a drawing using actual shadows as the medium. That is such an interesting concept that I would have never thought of before.

[@thekickingwolf5115]

Wow.. thats just incredible

[@micahsuboat1233]

I really enjoyed this video. You are a fantastic artist.

[@RoboticDragon]

Wow this guy is amazing, and very smart when it comes to his craft.

[@mrspeigle1]

Such a wonderful satisfying process to watch.

[@Anodrol50]

Beyond fascinating!

[@Miss_Toots]

Beautiful work

[@linson2010]

I have always wondered about the sculpting process. Thank you and the sculptor for sharing.

[@ANDROLOMA]

Marvellous talent.

[@MistyPurp]

This man is amazing and i dont mean to take anything away from him with my next statement, but my mind is blown imaging people do this 700 years ago i cant believe people were that talented then, and figuring out how to do all this without modern tools or techniques, and from houses with no electricity.

[@richarddunn7017]

Marble has been carved for almost 4000 years.

[@NinaHansen2008]

“Carving is all about trapping shadows! “What a brilliant way to express that!

[@unisophia]

made me want to try these tools and materials :) when I see someone doing art, I can’t help myself, but want to play with the toys these people are playing…

[@jaymistry779]

Incredible

[@christianbond1561]

I’ve carved, wood, limestone and various varieties of alabaster but never marble. Gouges, mallets, points, flats, claws, rasps - loved connecting with the history of carving

[@baticadavinci3984]

I love artists sooo much!

[@tillytoad804]

Stunning!

[@daviddimech99]

Beautiful sculpture

[@Leo-V]

Beautifully done

[@clivesmith9377]

What an amazing talent to have!

[@liammcooper]

great interview

[@danalaniz7314]

So educational and beautiful work. Thank you.

[@victorianidetch]

Talent and magic.

[@josephobenauer3093]

Absolutely riveting, great stuff.

[@abbywebster8343]

Wow, such wonderful talent!

[@mbakmamikofficial7999]

Nice share and best like

[@seanr2157]

This is absolutely fascinating! Thank you for sharing your process. I’d love to see more!

[@angelomariano9494]

beautiful art form

[@bebomora7391]

Absolutely beautiful, thank you for talking about your work as you make this gorgeous piece. That is awesome. I loved listening to how you do this. ❤

[@entennstudio]

Beautiful. Just wonderful stuff.

[@theodoremercutio1600]

my goodness... so amazing...

[@TorchwoodPandP]

Unrelated, but I love your workshirt!

[@annettefournier9655]

Breathtaking! But all I can think of watching that stone dust fly is: where is your respirator mask?!?! All that fine stone dust going into your lungs and damaging them! I'm such a mom.🙇‍♀️

[@suchendnachwahrheit9143]

You are completely right, though.

[@Gingy50]

That was my thought as well, it would damage the lungs overtime 😮 and of course how amazing and beautiful your piece is 😍 I could watch that slow mo all day, very fascinating 🧐

[@josuemartinez9688]

Let him be

[@annwagner5779]

I hope when he is just carving and not also presenting, he wears a mask.

[@antonioskoric9157]

Sugar is way more dangerous than this dust, but still you eat it and no piece of art comes from you

[@layedout778]

Beautiful.

[@vasilikonstan]

Stunning skill and talent.

[@Victor-ez7fl]

Great work

[@jannivannibell]

@1:45 look at that freehand straight line