Leonardo Da Vinci\'s the Last

Leonardo da Vinci's "The Last Supper"

One of the most monumental figures of the Renaissance period, Leonardo da Vinci, also embodied the spirit of curiosity and vigor of the era. He is well-known today for his many contributions to the world of art, as well as science. He represents everything that was new within the Renaissance era's desire to return to a quest for knowledge and experiences within a traditional dusty European context. His most famous work, "The Last Supper," represents a true Renaissance masterpiece, it "is one of the most renowned paintings of the High Renaissance," (Bambach, 2008).

The Last Supper" portrays Jesus and the apostles as they dine for the last time before Jesus is arrested and eventually sentenced to die on the cross. Present with the groups is also Judas, who was the traitor who turned over Jesus and his secrets to the Roman courts. In the painting, da Vinci is successful in his attempt to convey the painful emotions experienced by the apostles at the time Jesus had announced that this event would be his last dinner with them as a free man. Each of the apostles has a unique expression, effectively recapturing what each one would have been thinking and acting at the time of the actual event, if it were to have occurred.

One of the most obvious aspects of Renaissance art is the capturing of Catholic religious figures in a more human and realistic sort of way. Many Renaissance artists chose to depict Saints, apostles, as well as classical Greek mythological figures, but in a more humanistic way than the figures had every before been portrayed in the context of popular art.

Da Vinci effectively glorifies his sacred religious figures, while at the same time spinning them into realistic figures that an observer might have seen in real life. He gives new life to the archaic religious figures, therefore effectively breathing new life into the religious significance if the piece.

During the Renaissance period, several key techniques and elements were used by a variety of artist to re-invigorate their art with a new sense of realism, related to the wave of Renaissance humanism which swept over Europe at the time. During this time period, artists began seriously thinking of the perspective of the work which they were creating, "he perspective focuses on the figure of Christ in the centre. The window behind his head looks like a halo. Judas is the only figure in the painting who is leaning away from Christ, and the only figure who is in shadow," (BBC, 2008). This gave the works produced a much more real feel to the observer, which essentially echoed the social feeling of the day, the "artists' emphasis on unique qualities of each human face, figure in attempt to show individual's character, personality in life-like way," (Mary Teresa McCullagh Project, 2000). This is seen in Leonardo da Vinci's most famous piece "The Last Supper." This piece utilizes a perspective which makes the onlooker feel as though they are directly in the context of the painting. Observers get the sense that they are witnessing the monumental scene of Jesus' last supper as it is happening from their front view seat across the table. All the individual saints and apostles within the piece also show their own unique expressions, which effectively portrays the real human emotion which would have been present in the real life event da Vinci modeled his most famous painting on. Another major technical element is the use of a brighter contrast within the individual pieces. Within the color spectrum of "The Last Supper," da Vinci offers up the observer luscious oranges, blues, and reds contrasted against a pale grey back setting.