site on the paries of Milan ’s Convent of Santa Maria delle Grazie is a piece of work of art that ’s conceive by many to be one of the outstanding artistic masterpiece of all time . But its creator , Leonardo da Vinci , was n’t exactly stoked about it when the Duke of Milan , Ludovico Sforza , commission the piecein 1494 .
" Leonardo did not want to paint ' The Last Supper , ' " saysRoss King , writer of " Leonardo and The Last Supper . " " Instead , he want to do a gigantic bronze equestrian mo — a monumental work that would certainly have made him illustrious . But the outbreak of warfare in 1494 mean he could n’t do his bronze horse , so as compensation he was given the task of painting a rampart in a way where a band of mendicant ate their dinner party every day . He had never painted on such a large scale leaf . get little experience in such a difficult chore , it ’s not surprising that he complained bitterly about the delegacy , at which it was entirely possible that he would fail miserably . merrily , the story turn out otherwise . "
What result from da Vinci ’s hesitant involvement is a wall painting that famously depicts the last supper of Jesus Christ with his apostles , on the day before his crucifixion . The scene is based on the description in the Gospel of John 13:21 , and da Vinci intended to fetch the reactions of Jesus ' disciples the second they learned that one of them would betray him .
King , who has also written several other Book on Italian , Gallic and Canadian art and history , including " Brunelleschi ’s Dome " and " Michelangelo and the Pope ’s cap , " say da Vinci ’s " The Last Supper " is particularly important for a variety show of grounds , perhaps most of all for its elevation of the artist to celebrity condition . " Its windup marks the moment when Leonardo , then in his mid-40s , finally created what he called a ' study of celebrity , ' " he says . " It ’s awesome to think that , before ' The Last Supper , ' Leonardo had achieved very little . Had he died in , say , 1492 , when he was 40 , he would be little more than a footer in art account , recognise as someone who showed enormous hope but never delivered the goods . But with ' The Last Supper , ' he delivered spectacularly . Without having created ' The Last Supper , ' he probably would never have find his later commissions , including the ' Mona Lisa . ' So , the study was utterly of the essence not only to the history of art but also to his own life history . "
One special feature of " The Last Supper " is its sheer sizing . " No one else in story had ever create such a gravid painting with such a great level of realistic detail , as well as with such believable emotions and spectacular formula , " King says of the slice , which measure approximately15 invertebrate foot by 29 feet(4.5 meters by 8.8 metre ) . " No one who painted a Last Supper in the centuries afterward could do so without an eye on Leonardo ’s masterpiece . "
Da Vinci opted to portray one polar bit in his panorama : the New York minute just before thebirth of the Eucharist , when Jesus gain for the boodle ( intend to represent his rag soundbox ) and wine ( a representation of his rakehell ) . concord to Corinthians 11:23 - 26 , the event went like this :
Who Are the Subjects?
The notebook of da Vinci are a key to who thekey role player are in the painting , although expert still argue over some of the details . In one group , Bartholomew , James ( boy of Alpheus ) , and Andrew sit together , and look really shocked at what Jesus has just revealed . In another mathematical group , there ’s Judas Iscariot , Peter and John . Judas , the known betrayer , has a lot start on : He ’s fading into the background knowledge a moment , he ’s holding a bag of money , and he ’s pink over a salt shaker , which experts say is entail to symbolize the expression that " tip over the common salt " means cuckold one ’s master . Jesus sits in the middle of the group , and on his other side , viewers see apostle Thomas , James the Greater and Philip . Rounding out the group are Matthew , Jude Thaddeus and Simon the partisan . Thesymmetry of the figuresis signature da Vinci — the creative person favor balance in his work and made indisputable the horizontal picture have equal number of people on either side of Jesus and a serious-minded use of eye - pleasing perspective .
But the content and composition of " The Last Supper " are n’t the only reasons the painting remains legendary . " It has had a very pitiful history , " King says . " The pigment began flaking from the wall because of a perfect storm of risky climatical conditions in the refectory — mainly insensate and damp . That might not have been such a job had Leonardo worked in the true fresco proficiency , which make for very durable paintings . But he devise a method of his own that involved painting in oil and tempera on a wry rampart — something artists were admonish from doing . His technique , unsurprisingly , did not prove successful . "
Due to da Vinci ’s badly - advised pick and the pitiful custodianship in the centuries that follow the creation of the picture , " The Last Supper " started to wait jumpy . And then things got worse . " The body of work was insensitively ' restored ' by conservators who did n’t have intercourse what they were doing , and make more scathe than good , " King says . " In 1652 , in a kind of act of malicious mischief , the friar from the convent pick apart a hole in the wall ( cut off Christ ’s foot ) to make a threshold through the painting . The refectory inundate in the 19th hundred , and Napoleon used the building as a stable — which meant that it was fill with horses and manure . Then during World War II , it barely survived a turkey that destroyed much of the refectory . The fact that we still have it to enjoy is little inadequate of miraculous . "
