This manuscript image contains what may be one of the earliest depictions of the pretzel, and interestingly, it is not the only Last Supper image that features a pretzel on the table. Other images that feature a pretzel on the table during the Last Supper can be found here and here. Once in a while, you might see people hanging around in the corner of the image. Who are they? None other than the patrons who commissioned the painting.
And why not put yourself, at least virtually, in one of the most important scenes of the Bible if you have the money to do so? Paul Getty Museum at the Getty Center. I'm a rising junior at Pomona College interning in the web department for the summer of Comments on this post are now closed. Please e-mail web getty. ArtofFood collections exhibitions Getty Museum collection illuminated manuscripts J.
About The Author. Privacy Copyright. Skip to main content. The Last Supper. Analysis This work of art is by far the most famous representation of the Last Supper and has been analyzed in countless sources.
Download Medium Thumbnail. Everyone knows the painting depicts Jesus's last meal with his apostles before he was captured and crucified. But more specifically, Leonardo da Vinci wanted to capture the instant just after Jesus reveals that one of his friends will betray him, complete with reactions of shock and rage from the apostles.
In Leonardo da Vinci's interpretation, the moment also takes place just before the birth of the Eucharist, with Jesus reaching for the bread and a glass of wine that would be the key symbols of this Christian sacrament. And moving it would be tricky, to say the least.
Leonardo da Vinci painted the religious work directly and fittingly on the dining hall wall of the Convent of Santa Maria delle Grazie back in Frescos were painted on wet plaster. But Leonardo da Vinci rejected this traditional technique for several reasons. First off, he wanted to achieve a grander luminosity than the fresco method allowed for.
But the bigger problem with frescos—as Leonardo da Vinci saw it—was that they demanded the painter rush to finish his work before the plaster dried. In order to spend all the time he needed to perfect every detail, da Vinci invented his own technique , using tempera paints on stone. He primed the wall with a material that he hoped would accept the tempera and protect the paint against moisture. Although the painting itself was beloved, da Vinci's tempera-on-stone experiment was a failure.
By the early 16th century, the paint had started to flake and decay, and within 50 years, The Last Supper was a ruin of its former glory.
Early restoration attempts only made it worse. Vibrations from Allied bombings during World War II further contributed to the painting's destruction. Finally, in , a year restoration effort began. The Last Supper was ultimately restored , but it lost much of its original paint along the way.
For some reason, I recall it being one of the first artworks I ever discovered, possibly watching a documentary with my parents when I was a child. I confess that I have been fascinated by the figure of Leonardo da Vinci ever since.
Possibly one of the most famous artworks in the world , it was painted during the High Renaissance period for the Dominican monastery of Santa Maria delle Grazie in Milan, commissioned by Ludovico Sforza, the Duke of Milan. His words provoke a series of reactions that are captured in this masterpiece.
Hence, simultaneously, Christ is also seen reaching towards a glass of wine and a piece of bread, symbolising the institution of the Eucharist , a key moment in Christian tradition where Jesus invites his apostles to take these two elements which symbolise his body and blood. Leonardo , as a remarkable virtuoso, visually translated this moment in an apparently simple composition that , if looked closely, reveals a complex study of various human emotions and poses , depicting the reactions of his twelve apostles to his announcement.
Several drawings were made before the execution of this painting, where the artist meticulously studied each individual pose to manifest a certain emotion …Brilliant! Moreover, the artist allows the figures and their gestures to stand out by expertly avoiding any form of excessive decoration that could distract the viewer from the solemn event, resulting in a simple composition.
The figures are organised in four groups of three which , together with the three windows present in the background, symbolise the divine number three , emblem of the Holy Trinity in Christian religion. Judas is the one who will betray him , paid thirty silver coins by the Romans, which Leonardo skilfully shows by depicting him holding a bag in his right hand. Additionally, his betrayal is emphasised by representing him pulling away from Christ and casting his face in a superb chiaroscuro.
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