Leonardo Da Vinci's Last Supper
https://cenacolovinciano.org (official website)
Leonardo Da Vinci was a scientist, engineer, painter, sculptor, inventor, anatomist, architect, mathematician, writer
He embodied the idea of the many-sided man dreamed of by the Italian Renaissance.
The Last Supper offers a testimony of his multifaceted genius
In the last decade of the 15th century he was studying light, movement, sound and human emotions and their expressions
The Last Supper reflects all this – in his work Leonardo wanted to depict the motion of the soul.
Since September 1980 the Last Supper have been declared a Unesco World Heritage Site as a unique artistic achievement that transcends all historical contingencies.
The Last Supper opened up a new era in Art History.
The work represents the encounter between the human and the divine, between art and life.
The Last Supper cover the whole north wall of the refectory in the Convent of Santa Maria delle Grazie.
The refectory was the place where the Dominican friars met to eat, pray and meditated.
The place was referred to as “Cenacolo”.
It was Ludovico Sforza, called il Moro, that in 1985 summoned Leonardo to his court and asked him to decorate the wall of the refectory with the representation of Christ’s Last Supper scene in order to gain favour with the Dominican friars.
Leonardo Da Vinci's "Last Supper" is a huge painting of 4.60 meters high and 8.80 meters wide;
it was made with tempera and oil .
In order to create this unique work, Leonardo carried out an exhaustive research creating an infinity of preparatory sketches. Leonardo abandoned the traditional method of fresco painting, painting the scene "dry" on the wall of the refectory.
Centuries before the invention of camera and cinema Leonardo da Vinci captured in a wall-painting a unique moment of drama and excitement. Christ has just announced the betrayal by one of the apostles, an announcement which throws into panic those present, a turning point which is going to lead to extreme consequences for Christ.
He embodied the idea of the many-sided man dreamed of by the Italian Renaissance.
The Last Supper offers a testimony of his multifaceted genius
In the last decade of the 15th century he was studying light, movement, sound and human emotions and their expressions
The Last Supper reflects all this – in his work Leonardo wanted to depict the motion of the soul.
Since September 1980 the Last Supper have been declared a Unesco World Heritage Site as a unique artistic achievement that transcends all historical contingencies.
The Last Supper opened up a new era in Art History.
The work represents the encounter between the human and the divine, between art and life.
The Last Supper cover the whole north wall of the refectory in the Convent of Santa Maria delle Grazie.
The refectory was the place where the Dominican friars met to eat, pray and meditated.
The place was referred to as “Cenacolo”.
It was Ludovico Sforza, called il Moro, that in 1985 summoned Leonardo to his court and asked him to decorate the wall of the refectory with the representation of Christ’s Last Supper scene in order to gain favour with the Dominican friars.
Leonardo Da Vinci's "Last Supper" is a huge painting of 4.60 meters high and 8.80 meters wide;
it was made with tempera and oil .
In order to create this unique work, Leonardo carried out an exhaustive research creating an infinity of preparatory sketches. Leonardo abandoned the traditional method of fresco painting, painting the scene "dry" on the wall of the refectory.
Centuries before the invention of camera and cinema Leonardo da Vinci captured in a wall-painting a unique moment of drama and excitement. Christ has just announced the betrayal by one of the apostles, an announcement which throws into panic those present, a turning point which is going to lead to extreme consequences for Christ.
Leonardo’s picture is very different from the traditional representation of this biblical story, where the apostles were always depicted as sitting quietly at the table in a row. Christ has just spoken the tragic words and the apostles shrink back in terror as they hear the revelation. In a dramatic contrast Christ sits calm and resigned amidst the turmoil. However, there is nothing chaotic in the picture. The twelve apostles fall quite naturally in groups of three on his left and right, linked to each other by gestures and movements. It is a harmonious interplay of movements, an astonishing achievement in a painting which is by its nature static. The scene is lit by a cold clear light that brings forth in analytic detail every object. The plates, the food, the transparency of the glasses and the folds and decorations in the tablecloth form an extraordinary still life frieze.
Looking at the apostles’ gestures, it is interesting to note that the closer the figures are to the centre of the scene the more marked their reactions are. This is the result of Leonardo's understanding of the laws of acoustics he was studying at this time. To use his words: “those who are closer better understand, the furthest do not hear at all.
( https://www.leonardoamilano.org/english/last_supper.php )
Looking at the apostles’ gestures, it is interesting to note that the closer the figures are to the centre of the scene the more marked their reactions are. This is the result of Leonardo's understanding of the laws of acoustics he was studying at this time. To use his words: “those who are closer better understand, the furthest do not hear at all.
( https://www.leonardoamilano.org/english/last_supper.php )
Hidden music https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0rP3h6-ECq8
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uIjJd1kPqzQ&t=97s from min 0.39 to min 1.33 -
to read the score correctly you must go from right to left
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uIjJd1kPqzQ&t=97s from min 0.39 to min 1.33 -
to read the score correctly you must go from right to left