A bold reimagining of Michelangelo’s David in solid carbon fibre. A culmination of the artist's engineering and artistic expertise that pushes the boundaries of his medium and challenges our understanding of religious history, gender, and the notion of change.

We will be unveiling Alastair Gibson and Carbon Art 45's most ambitious sculpture to date to the general public for the very first time at SAATCHI Gallery with FOCUS Art Fair from 10-13 October 2024.

Before we reveal this monumental 3.7m tall, 450kg solid carbon fibre sculpture in its entirety, we will be sharing insight into why and how it was made and the message Alastair Gibson is trying to convey.

So where did we begin…

Over 4 years ago The Carbon Art team set about laying up 87 plies/layers of bespoke, UK-produced carbon fibre sheets to make a total of 64 blocks at 50mm each when cured-far more than just a time-consuming task, a true understanding of the material and processes was required to make this happen. Particularly in the curing process where great attention needed to be paid to the exotherm conditions to control the heat produced from the vast amounts of resin in the material.

 Once all 64 of our 50mm solid carbon fibre blocks had been successfully cured in the autoclave, we needed to transfer all the body part templates that make up Carbon David-that’s 122 individual contoured pieces! We spared no time or effort in nesting the pieces as consciously as possible to optimise space and reduce waste. These pieces were then water jet cut which is a process that uses nothing more than water pressure and abrasives to get the cleanest precision cut without the waste.

It was at this stage we finally got the first glimpse of the unique ‘waves’ created by the horizontally laminated carbon fibre sheets- revealing the potential of this otherwise familiar material as an artistic medium.

Each of the 122 contoured pieces were carefully positioned using orientation jigs and then cure-bonded together to create a base from which each body part could be 5-axis machined, using the latest technology, before being meticulously finished by hand…a total of 960 man hours were spent sanding!

We were pleased with the effect we managed to achieve and were eager to move onto the next phase of this monumental task.

This process of creating solid carbon fibre blocks, curing, nesting, water jet cutting, bonding, 5-axis machining and hand finishing was repeated for all the parts that make up Carbon David.  

The parts that required considerably more thought and attention were the hands…not only are hands notoriously hard for artists to portray but because Michelangelo’s David clutches a marble stone in one hand and a sling in the other, the inside of his hands have never been visible.  

Alastair chose to make 5 different versions of David’s stone that could be swapped out-creating yet another challenge for the sculptor…needless to say, all 5 stones now fit ‘like a glove’…which is down to the artist’s engineering background where every millimetre counts. These stones are just one example of the many interchangeable features on Carbon David- addressing the ‘notion of change that is ‘prevalent’ throughout the piece…more on that topic to come soon.

With a career in the engineering and motorsport industry spanning over two decades, it’s no surprise Alastair seeks success through modification, alteration and development…one of the reasons behind Carbon David’s interactive features. Interchangeable elements include stones, slings, jewellery and accessories and most importantly- anatomy.

‘Gender’ and ‘change’ are prominent themes throughout this sculpture and both are considered interconnected in today’s contemporary society…although that was not always the case- Carbon David can be presented as either male, female or gender neutral to challenge such outdated ideologies.

This leads to the question-Is it conceivable that a woman could have Slayed Goliath?

Due to the nature of carbon fibre, this monument will undoubtably out-live us all and we hope that whoever makes its discovery in centuries to come will question or better yet-assume the gender norms of our generation.

Beneath Carbon David’s seamlessly concealed chest plate is a chest cavity that houses one of three carbon hearts- inspired by Carbon Art 45’s original Engineered Passion sculpture, representing kindness, passion and courage in Gold, Red and Purple.

When displayed individually, these hearts are sculptures within themselves but when placed inside the chest cavity with anatomically correct ‘arteries and veins’ they bring Carbon David to life and make it unmistakenly an Alastair Gibson piece of art- a nod to the iconic sculptures created by Carbon Art 45 which he established over 15 years after leaving his Formula One career behind to become a full-time artist.

State-of-the-art 5-axis machines were used to reduce the solid carbon fibre blocks down to their most basic shapes before being heavily hand finished to create each element of Carbon David.

A rather painstaking process using modern day tools and machinery, let alone by hand as Michelangelo would’ve done it.  It is interesting to note that shark skin was originally used as sandpaper…a very fitting reference to Alastair’s iconic marine life sculptures and most recognisably-his shark sculptures.

We noticed during the sanding of the head that David’s pupils are somewhat heart- shaped. It is unclear as to whether this was intentional on Michelangelo’s part but we decided to accentuate them on Carbon David…a detail that most likely won’t be seen due to the scale of the sculpture but an important one nonetheless.

Upon completion of David’s head, we could feel that we were nearing the finish line and it was a great feeling to finally give him a form of identity.  

The same processes were used for Carbon David’s hair...another time-consuming and physically demanding challenge, with hours upon hours spent sanding and hand finishing, but one of the more satisfying ones as David’s intricate curls and waves revealed the true beauty of the effect we managed to create by laminating carbon fibre horizontally.

Special attention was paid to the overall shape of his hair as it would need to be detachable during his transformation from male to female…this was done by separating the sideburns which could later be reattached with bespoke inlaid magnets.

David without his hair is what we refer to as ‘Modern David’.

Now that all elements of Carbon David had been made and painted with a UV resistant clear coat, it was time to tackle the assembly.

Starting from the feet and working our way up to the hips- this was the first time we got a real sense of the scale of this piece! We divided the sculpture into three sections before putting them together and then finally attaching the head.

Each section was glued together using the highest grade adhesives and with reinforced steel rods. 3M Scotch-weld 9323 Structural adhesive Michelangelo’s David features a tree trunk which supports the weight of the marble and provides stability….an unnecessary requirement for Carbon David due to the nature and strength of Carbon fibre.

Anybody that knows Alastair, knows that his ingenuity is not only evident in the final product but in the production process too- he will make and design custom tools and jigs for any problems that arise during the making of his sculptures.

A multitude of bespoke jigs, hoists, frames and tools were needed for this project due to its size (3.7m) and weight (470kg). 

At last the sculpture was fully assembled and ready for its final trip to our neighbours at Mercedes AMG for one last coat of UV resistant clear coat to seal all the joins and protect it against the elements- a total of 15 litres of paint was required for this stage alone.

This was a mammoth task that served as a trial-run for transporting the sculpture and put all our planning to the test. We used custom made hoists and jigs to ensure the weight was evenly distributed and the sculpture could be loaded and unloaded safely.

Once at the paint shop, it was loaded into a private booth where it was skilfully sprayed by Formula One paint experts . After curing there for a few days, Carbon David was returned to the studio for its final fittings- the hair, the chest plate, the heart, the stones and the many other interchangeable features.

Seeing Carbon David fully assembled and painted, after 4 years of hard work, was a proud moment for Alastair Gibson and the whole Carbon Art team-together we had achieved something remarkable- “ bold reimagining of Michelangelo’s David in solid carbon fibre.

A culmination of the artist's engineering and artistic expertise that pushes the boundaries of his medium and challenges our understanding of religious history, gender, and the notion of change”