What single work of art?

What movie, song, opera, play or work of architecture represents or embodies it's time period to you? Why?

David by Michelangelo
http://www.imsc.res.in/local/gallery/michelangelo/david.gif
It represents the Renaissance. This era leaves behind the dark ages and embodies an acceptance of the nature of man.
I believe that in everybody's life there are dark years when self-punishment, self-doubts and even despair take away all our joy, but once we leave that behind, beauty and happiness replace the darkness.

I fell in love with the statue of David when I was 16 and wished that Aphrodite would transform him into man for me :o

Like Pygmalion and Galatea you know :confused:

edit: oh the original question: Nothing has had a stronger impact on me than the pyramids of Giza. I think the way I saw them for the first time was amazing.

I had arrived in Cairo the night before and in the morning a friend was driving me to her house in the countryside. While we were in the car, I told herthat even if its very touristic, I can't wait to see the pyramids, and she said "look, they're behind you" when I looked back, at the end of the busy and dusty boulevard, there stood the big pyramid. The sight was out of this world. The contrast between the modern world and the pyramid left me speechless. I'll never forget that day.

LOL @ sheila4pd and Bodhi Tree! What's with women and David anyway? He shames me into going to the gym more often.

This is a hard question. I'd like to pick one, but I'm going to pick two.

This may sound trite or chessy, but I'm partial to Carmen. I always have been. While fairly unlreated, I became more partial to Carmen after the fantastic Edouard Manet/Diego Velasquez show that premiered at Musee D'Orsay, and then came to the Met expanded! The Spanish influence on French asthetics, and the break with the Italian schools is facinating to me, hence really enjoying Carmen. It also really changed the face of Comic Opera, and was denounced as debauchery and immoral at the time of its premiere, as so many works of genius are.

My other is Moby Dick. This is another example of a book that was poorly recieved, but both English, and American literature would not be what they are today had this book not been published. There is no great theme that isn't in this book, and its also the greatest work of descriptive prose ever written.

So, if you ask me the question again in 20 minutes the answers might change. For right now, that's why I think are two of the greatest works of art of their times.

When I think of defining in the humanities, I think of Frank Lloyd Wright, whose architectural masterpieces brought us hurtling forward into the 20th century. His buildings are absolutely fascinating. When the rest of the world was living in these (which are very nice, mind you):

http://charlesrupert.com/images/traditional/edclassical-sm2.jpg


Wright was creating these!!

http://www.gibson-design.com/images/forum-fallingwater.gif

http://www.highereducation.org/crosstalk/ct0101/images/frankloyd_frontpicture.jpg

ah Kelly, I love FLW too. He was one of a kind, a groundbreaker.

everyone has offered some inspiring examples.

Today I was thinking of the Mackinaw Bridge which began construction in 1954...the largest span of suspention bridge in the USA at the time, connecting the upper and lower peninsulas of Michigan, forever changing travel between the two parts of the state. I remember driving there with my parents when I was 3 and a half years old....it's one of my first memories, to see the construction.