Leonardo's depiction of the Last Supper, which is an event
described in all four of the Gospels, is known as the work (books in the
Christian New Testament). Christ gathered his disciples for dinner the night
before one of them would betray him. He also told them what was going to happen
and washed their feet (a gesture symbolizing that all were equal under the eyes
of the Lord). Christ gave the disciples specific instructions on how to eat and
drink going forward in his memory as they shared a meal and beverage.
It was the first time the Eucharist, a tradition that is still followed, was
celebrated.
The Last Supper specifically illustrates the next few
moments of this event after Christ dropped the bombshell that one disciple will
betray him before dawn, and all twelve have responded to the news with varying
degrees of terror, indignation, and disbelief.
Leonardo had never completed a painting of this size and was
unfamiliar with the fresco technique used in most murals. Unlike frescos,
where the pigments are blended with the wet plaster, the painting was created
using experimental colors straight on the dry plaster wall. As a result, it
has not withstood the test of time well. Leonardo had to fix the paint flaking
from the wall that existed even before it was done.
Recently, there has been a lot of interest in the painting's
hidden features, but by focusing on these "hidden" aspects, most
people overlook the great sense of perspective the piece demonstrates. The
picture's acute angles lead to the room's back wall, which appears to be in the
distance, and the windows that reveal the hills and sky beyond. The kind of day
depicted via these windows contributes to the tranquillity that resides in the
piece's heart, around the figure of Christ.
The vanishing point of Leonardo's perspective design of the
Last Supper lies directly behind Christ's right temple, indicating the precise
placement of the sensus communis, or central nervous system, of his brain. He
delineated the orthogonal borders of the six ceiling coffer columns, the ends
of the tables, and the floor lines by drawing a thread in radial directions
from this spot. He located the points for the horizontal lines of the 12 coffer
rows by drawing diagonal lines up to the coffer corners from the right and/or
left border of the horizon line.
There are many unknown stories behind this painting. Among
them, ten things must be known if you pay attention to the painting. In
addition to those facts, the different angle that Da Vinci Code brings up in
the novel also increases the curiosity about the painting. However, in this
article, we will discuss 10 main points.
The first thing to focus on is who is in this painting. From
the right side of the painting, Bartholomew, James the Lesser, Andrew, Judas
Iscariot, John, Jesus, Thomas, James the greater, Phillip, Matthew, Jude and
finally Simon, people are seen in the painting.
Let's take look at the secret of this painting, several
renowned painters have painted The Last Supper, which is a highly well-liked
religious picture. Leonardo da Vinci, in contrast to painters before and after
him, decided against giving Jesus Christ a halo. Several art historians think
Leonardo da Vinci was more of a naturalist than a theist. Leonardo portrayed
every figure in the painting as an everyday person because he believed that
nature represents God.
Most of them explain this painting as a failed experiment. Da
Vinci experimented with tempura paint on a dry, sealed plaster wall in the
Santa Maria delle Grazie convent in Milan, Italy, in contrast to typical
frescoes, which Renaissance painters painted on wet plaster walls. Nevertheless,
the project was a failure since the paint did not stick correctly and started
to peel off just a few decades after the job was accomplished.
There are several theories concerning the symbolism of the
artwork. For instance, numerous academics have debated the significance of the
salt bottle that was spilt close to Judas' elbow. Salt that has spilt over may
represent poor fortune, grief, religion, or Jesus as the salt of the earth.
Moreover, academics have commented on da Vinci's diet
choices. As each type of fish has a uniquely symbolic value, they argue over
whether the fish on the table a herring or an eel is. " Arringa " is
the Italian name for eel. Arringa, a term that sounds similar, implies
indoctrination. The word "renga" meaning herring in the northern
Italian dialect also refers to a person who rejects religion. According to the
Bible, Jesus had foretold that his apostle Peter would deny knowing him.
The painting's perspective, which seems to invite the viewer
to enter the dramatic scene right away, is what makes the masterpiece so
arresting. Da Vinci pounded a nail into the wall and tied a string to it to
make marks that served as a guide for his hand as he painted the angles.
Panin Brambilla Barcilon and his team used sonar, infrared
resectoscopes, core samples, microscopic pictures, and microscopic images to
remove the extra layers of paint and reconstruct the original as exactly as
they could at the end of the 20th century. According to critics, Leonardo da
Vinci only produced a small portion of the paintings that are in existence
today.
Early in the 16th century, replicas of da Vinci's artwork
were done by three of his pupils, including Giampietrino. A full-scale replica
created by Giampietrino is currently on display at the Royal Academy of Arts in
London. The major basis for the most recent restoration of the piece was this
oil painting on canvas. The Leonardo da Vinci Museum in Belgium houses the
second replica made by Andrea Solari, while the Church of Saint Ambrogio in
Switzerland houses the third copy made by Cesare da Sesto.
Residents of the monastery carved a new entrance in the wall
of the failing painting in 1652, which resulted in the removal of a section of
the artwork depicting Jesus' feet. Napoleon Bonaparte's troops converted the
area into a stable towards the end of the 18th century and further harmed the
wall with missiles. The monastery was bombarded by the Nazis during World War
II, destroying the surrounding walls.