Art Analysis: The Last Supper By Leonardo Da Vinci

By choosing this part of the story; he also chooses to leave out the bread and the wine normally sitting on the table in visuals of the Last Supper. Leonardo’s version is also the first to have Judas sitting on the same side of the table as Jesus. Judas is identifiable by the symbols employed by Leonardo, such as the money bag clutched tightly in Judas’ hand and the difference in his gesture and facial expression to the other disciples. Although this painting breaks conventions, the realism used by Leonardo helped the paintings function of conveying a “true” story to its audience to inspire them to be more faithful.

First of all, The painting of “The Last Supper “by Ugolino di Nerio, shows the twelve apostles sitting across from and besides Jesus Christ, the painting looks very crowded, as the ceiling and the walls are very close, with extreme proximity between Jesus and the apostles. The painting by Nerio is shown as if the scene was enacted in a closed room with no windows and no sunlight, Also, the heads on some of the apostles, look like it is twisted to the other side of their bodies, there is no gap to show a smooth head turn to the right or to the left. Nerio’s painting shows, eleven out of the twelve apostles exhibiting a golden circular plate or crown

Tintoretto’s portrayal of the Last Supper is one of dramatic Metaphysicalism. It features the dinning table diagonally along the left half of the work behind it Jesus and his Disciples before the table there is a woman cleaning and in the area above them are the angelic presence of cherubs. There are a number of smaller scenes present within the artwork and there are a number of focal points, which lead the viewer’s eyes over them. The work is full of emotion and is largely unbalanced this is reflective of the time in which the work was created when there was a lot of social outrage and anger. Tintoretto used fantasy, to the point of surrealism in this work; Cherubs and halos are used to emphasize the religious significance of the event. This work has the presence of women. There is a strong contrast in this work with very deep shadows and vibrant bright highlights due to the dramatic lighting. There is an extremely strong use of colour and chiaroscuro.

Leonardo da Vinci was known for a number of famous paintings. “The Last Supper” is one of the most famous paintings in the world, and is by far my favorite artwork created by Leonardo da Vinci. Mr. da Vinci was born on April 15, 1452 in the town of Anchiano, Italy. His parents named him Leonardo di ser Piero da Vinci. In 1495, At the age of forty three, Leonardo began working on “The Last Supper” mural and continued working on the masterpiece till February 9, 1498 says khanacademy.org. The painting is located in the back of the dining hall at the monastery of Santa Maria delle Grazie in Milan, Italy. The mural is a rather large fresco style painting, measuring in size of 181 inches by 346 inches. On May 2, 1519 Leonardo da Vinci died the age of 67 in Clos Luce, France. I have decided to analyze this wonderful piece of art, because of my love for Jesus Christ. The Last Supper draws my attention, because it gives me a visual of the last supper Jesus Christ had with his disciples, that we read about in the Holy Bible.

Da Vinci’s “The Last Supper,” was painted during his time in Milan, which was from about 1495 to 1498. “The Last Supper” is a tempera and oil mural on plaster. He created this painting for the refectory of the city’s Monastery of Santa Maria delle Grazie. Also known as “The Cenacle,” this painting is about fifteen by twenty nine feet and is the artist’s only surviving fresco. The painting depicts the Passover dinner, in which Jesus Christ addresses the Apostles and says, “One of you shall betray me.” One of the painting’s most vivid features in the painting is each Apostle’s distinct emotive expression and body language. When the French in 1499 (invaded Milan) and the Sforza family fled, da Vinci also escaped. He was possibly the first to Venice and then to Florence.

The Last supper represents the first celebration of this sacrifice that is now a key part to every mass. That is why it was so important to show Jesus twice in these paintings.

The artwork that I have chosen to evaluate id Leonardo da Vinci’s The Last Supper. This painting is the last supper Jesus had before he was betrayed. I will interpret this painting by the use of cultural studies and its relation to this painting by its use of symbolic iconography as well as cultural studies and how this makes this painting so significant to this day

Leonardo's paintings 'The Vitruvian Man', 'Mona Lisa' and 'The Last Supper' have inspired other artists today by his various techniques. We already know by Leonardo da Vinci's 'Last Supper' that his oil paints didn't last for long and have deteriorated,through the years paints are now made durable.

Most remember Leonardo da Vinci from the famous Mona Lisa that created in 1503.(source 5) The Last Supper and Salvator Mundi tend to be very well known because his paintings had life like features.

When I see the painting the shape is symmetric in the sense that there are the same amount of people on both sides of Jesus. The genre of this painting is Christian art.There are also four panels on both sides of the walls. In my opinion, the target audience that this painting was intended for are those who are believers of Christ. I feel this way because I think that this painting portrays the event that is talked about in the bible in the scripture Matthew 26, verse 21 where Jesus says “…"Truly I tell you, one of you will betray me.". He then continues in verse 23 saying, “The one who has dipped his hand into the bowl with me will betray me”. In the painting, you can clearly see the man two seats away from his right reaching for the bowl at the same time as Christ. This event lead to the Holy Eucharist, also known as communion or the Lord’s Supper where Christ takes the bread which was to symbolize his body and wine which was to symbolize his

The composition is built on the simple geometry of a pyramid, common among Renaissance artworks. The viewer’s attention is drawn immediately to Christ not only because He is located in the center, but the empty spaces surrounding him also serve as an emphasis. In addition, it gives off a sense of loneliness and isolation, knowing He is about to be betrayed. The twelve apostles are separated into four groups of three, with Christ as the central axis. Leonardo Da Vinci maintained the balance and symmetry within the space of the pyramid, dividing the four groups of apostles equally on both sides. The linear placement of the groups of apostles provides a balance and prevents overemphasis and attention on the center.

An early example of fantastic renaissance and one of the world’s most recognizable paintings, as considered to many all over the world, is Leonardo Da Vinci’s Last Supper, which is an iconic and powerful work of art. Finished in 1494, it has stood the test the time and you can go see this painting currently in Milan, Italy at the Santa Maria delle Grazie. In order to paint it, Leonardo used an oil/tempera mix and applied it to a dry wall. “He did this because he wanted to capture the look of an oil painting, but even within his lifetime it began to wear off. Further destruction was caused in the seventeenth century, when a door was cut into the bottom,” according to Italianrenaissance.org. As it stands today, this masterpiece is currently 523 years old which is impressive due to the fact that it has been through so many tragic events, such as countless wars and occupations of different countries. Natural disasters could have also easily destroyed it as well like countless other paintings last throughout time.

Although, the way Leonardo allows its viewers to depict the scene from a specific point in the Bible adds to the importance and significance of the painting in which no other artist could even compare. He does allow the viewer to recognize this scene by the gestures of both the Lord and the Apostles. The Lord sits ever so quietly while the Apostles rise in reaction to what the Lord had just announced. It is rather obvious that Leonardo chose the critical moment after the Lord had stated, ‘Verily I say unto you that one of you shall betray me,' because of the emotions that evolve in this specific scene (Matt. 26.21).

Leonardo’s painting actually represents the different reactions of the Apostles when Jesus told them that they would be the reason for his death and that someone among them is a betrayer. We can see from the expressions on their faces as well as their postures that they all feel various degrees of anger and surprise. Bartholomew, James and Andrew, who are at the very left corner of the table, look shocked, while Matthew, Jude and Simon, which are at the opposite corner seem to discuss what had just happened. Actually, Matthew and Jude are turned toward Simon and it appears like they are trying to find out if he has any answer to their primary questions. Really interesting is the posture of Judas who is the only person with his right elbow on the table. He looks rather reserved and stunned by the sudden revelation of his plan. Judas is wearing blue and green clothes and is clutching a small bag, which is recognized by many to be the silver given to him as payment to betray Jesus. The most important part of his representation is that he is in shadow, which somehow reveals that he is responsible for the future death of Christ. Next to Judas are Peter, who is visibly furious, and John who looks like is going to fade away. And here is again one of the many questions that this work raise- is it John on the painting or is it Mary Magdalene? Some art analyzers claim that the person to Jesus is not the Apostle John but Mary Magdalene. In fact, this

I have been greatly impacted by all of the artists, styles, and types of art we have talked about so far in Art History I. We have looked at sculptors, paintings, architecture, and prints with varying styles, from a numerous amount of artists. While I am intrigued by mostly all of what we have studied, The Last Supper paintings catch my eye the most. Many artists have successfully completed paintings of The Last Supper including, Tintoretto, Paolo Veronese, and Leonardo da Vinci; however, da Vinci was the first, original painter of The Last Supper. My favorite Last Supper painting definitely has to be the one by Tintoretto. Tintoretto’s Last Supper painting truly represents various key aspects of art; from the usage of colors and shadows, all the way to the numerous groups of people taking on various different tasks.