Valued in excess of $1 billion, the Mona Lisa, perhaps the greatest treasure of Renaissance art, is one of many masterpieces of High Renaissance painting housed in the Louvre. The painting is known to Italians as La Gioconda, the French call her La Joconde. The work is arguably the finest ever example of portrait art, and one of the greatest Renaissance paintings of the 15th and 16th centuries.
Despite being the most famous painting in the world, the Mona Lisa is - like all of Leonardo's works - neither signed nor dated. Its title comes from the biography of Leonardo written by the 16th century Mannerist painter and biographer Giorgio Vasari (1511-74), and published around 1550, which reported his agreement to paint the portrait of Lisa Gherardini,
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Her left arm sits comfortably on the armrest of the chair and is clasped by the hand of her right arm which crosses her front. The slightly protective position of her arms, as well as the armrest, creates a sense of distance between sitter and spectator.
The background landscape behind the sitter was created using aerial perspective, with its smoky blues and no clearly defined vanishing point. It gives the composition significant depth, although its details reveal a clear imbalance between the (higher) rocky horizon to the right, compared to the (lower) flatlands stretching away on the left. This imbalance adds to the slightly surreal atmosphere of the
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This was not a deliberate act of the artist, as scans indicate that originally she was given both. It is possible that the color pigment used for these facial features has since faded or been inadvertently removed during cleaning.
The Mona Lisa exemplifies Leonardo's contribution to the art of oil painting, namely his mastery of sfumato. This painterly technique involves the smooth, almost imperceptible, transition from one colour to another, by means of ultra-subtle tonal gradations. Evident throughout the painting, Leonardo's use of sfumato is particularly visible in the soft contouring of Lisa Gherardini's face, around the eyes and mouth. It was a technique of oil painting that he had already demonstrated with great success in The Virgin of the Rocks (1483-5).
The general impression created by the Mona Lisa portrait is one of great serenity, enriched by a definite air of mystery. The serenity comes from the muted colour scheme, the soothing sfumato tonality, and the harmony created by the sitter's pyramid-shaped pose and understated drapery. The mystery stems from a number of factors: first, her enigmatic half-smile; second, her gaze, which is directed to the right of the viewer; her hands which have a slightly unreal, lifeless quality - almost as if they belonged to a different
Leonardo Da Vinci was one of the most famous artists during the time of the Renaissance, The Mona Lisa for example, was a painting created between 1503 and 1506, it is the most famous painting ever painted. It is a portrait of the young wife of a Florentine silk merchant. It shows a young woman with her famous smile sitting on a balcony high above a landscape.
The most emphasized part of this image is the man lying on top of the child and leaning against the bed, part of the body being directly in the center and seems to take up the most space, this is where the eye tends to linger. The negative space is made interesting by including a turned over chair, and rumpled sheets on a bed and other homely objects, which indicates that this is set in a home. The contrast that is shown in this artwork is through the use of value since Daumier used implied light, the brighter and darker areas create a contrast against each other. While this piece is not symmetrically balanced, it is balanced asymmetrically. It is asymmetrically balanced through a man and most of a bed being placed in the center, on the right is a small child, the upper torso of an older looking man, a chair next to him, and the rest of the bed; on the left of the man is most of what seems to be a woman, and other less detailed furniture. There is a sense of repetition through the positive shapes of the people lying on the floor, this is also shown through the use of line that creates the entire lithograph. This provides a sense of cohesiveness and unity throughout the
The type of balance is considered asymmetrical. There is also no distinct pattern in this piece. Another detail to this artwork is that everything is in proportion. The only rhythm and movement found is that the young girl in the sky looks as if she is flying. A strong contrast found is, again, the bright floral border compared to the dark picture inside.
"Leonardo da Vinci paintings stand out from the work of his peers and contemporaries due to his paintings’ unique effect on viewers, ultimately caused by his impressive scientific approach toward his work." Doc. 3 Due to da Vinci's anatomical and physical studies, he was able to achieve the idea of light and shadow along with perspective. This technique is displayed in two of his most popular creations, The Last Super and the Mona Lisa,...
Perhaps one of the most famous paintings Leonardo da Vinci painted is the Mona Lisa in which he painted in 1503. Many experts believe the portrait is of a very wealthy women who lived in Florence whose
Following centuries of a powerful church, chivalrous knights, and harsh struggles, emerged a season of rebirth, rediscovery, and revival. Characterized by humanistic ideals, the Renaissance period marked a new style of art and literature and fresh appreciation of the body and nature. The pinnacle of the period occurred from 1500 to 1520, an era concentrated in Italy and known as the High Renaissance. Two prominent faces of the time were Leonardo da Vinci, painter of the acclaimed, “Mona Lisa,” and Michelangelo Buonarroti, sculptor of the jaw-dropping, “Pieta.” As the Renaissance spread North, Jan van Eyck, gifted artist of the “Arnolfini Wedding,” entered the public eye as well. Gradually, the study of mortal man replaced the study of the Almighty
During my second time visiting the museum, I looked at paintings from the 15th and 19th centuries. Two of the art works that I choose is “The Story of Joseph” from the Renaissance period and “The Marketplace” from the modern art period. Both of these paintings were from different time periods but they were also very similar in content and style.
For example, Masaccio used the medium fresco. It dries quickly and requires the artist to work fast with color broadly applied. This medium enables Masaccio to create generalized forms over the precise details of oil and tempura painting. However, Campin used the oil medium. This gave him the ability to create jewel-like illusions of reality. Campin and others of this era were motivated to paint the external world and all the different facets that create it. On the other hand, Masaccio wanted to create a painting that is more realistic and wanted the people to be able to relate to the art. Also, both artists use light and shadow to highlight and emphasize different parts of the paintings. For instance, Campin lit the room with sunlight and put a focus on Mary’s dress. This lighting causes the dress to turn into a shape of a star. This can symbolize the presence of the star of Bethlehem. Many other religious symbols are found in the painting. The eyes are not drawn to a particular object. This is not the case in Masaccio’s painting. He does not particularly shine light on one object. Even though the eyes are drawn to Jesus, we get a sense of balance between all the objects. This portrays faith and it’s mysteries as well as the perfection symbolism that comes with God. Masaccio creates a three dimensional like form even though it is on a two-dimensional surface. The painting shows
Both the Lady and the Mona Lisa are white European women who came from, what looks like, higher class families who were born, bred, and educated according to the customs and standards of the era and come from privileged backgrounds. Both are wearing veils over their hair and both wearing dark colored dresses with long sleeves. Their hands are seen in both portraits, just above the waist. Both women were part of the Renaissance that affected their home regions in similar ways, the ideas going back and forth between the north and south, both influencing each other in significant
The Mona Lisa is one of the most famous art works of all time by the Italian artist Leonardo Da Vinci. This portrait was done in oil and it is a piece that looks very real. On the other hand, “Wynwood’s Finest” is a well-known mural by Abstrk, who is an artist from Miami. This piece is graffiti on a wall and it looks more animated, fiction like, than the Mona Lisa.
Overall the artist does make a unified scene in this composition. Birch used these principals of design to make his composition more effective like balance, movement, repetition and unity. The composition seems balanced because most of the subjects in the painting are all equally distributed and proportioned.
The Italian Renaissance included some of the greatest artists we have ever seen from Leonard Da Vinci, to Michelangelo, and Raphael. The Renaissance took place from the late thirteenth to sixteenth centuries and is know as the ‘rebirth’. The idea that the rebirth of the arts after being asleep for a thousand years is an amazing thing to grasp. This time brought back light to liberal arts, which were on the brink of being extinct. (Murray 2) What is also interesting about art during this time was that most of the art had Christian in its roots, for example, Botticelli’s The Allegory of Spring (Faure 1) is said to have had a Christian interpretation. (Murray) “Every Italian artist, willingly took the title of architect, sculptor, and painter” (Faure 2). At the beginning of the fifteenth century, the Italian painters had asked the Flemish painters for their secret techniques because the Italians felt like the language of painting was one that was always meant for them. (Faure 4) The sculptors claimed their inspiration from ancient works. Lastly the Renaissance introduced idea of individualism, which helped the Italians get away from everything that was going on during that time. Art during the Renaissance included painting, sculpting and architecture, all of which were an important part in expressing the idea of individualism and making art what is is today.
This imbalance also allows the viewer to discern the focal point of Starry Night. As you may have already surmised, the focal point of this piece is the large tower on left side (when facing the art). One could argue that the moon in the top left may be focal point, but the observational tower is what is used to view the moon. In a metaphorical sense, it is the way in which the artist views the world and receives his knowledge: through his art.
The cracked and crumbling mountains add to this movement too, while the water below and the white figure stay completely still. The use of shadows in the picture builds a strong contrast between sources of light and darkness. The lighting projects emphasis on several objects and builds three dimensions using shadow and color. The contrast also brings the three dimensional illusion to life, giving the painting its distinguishing features. The painting lacks a definite pattern or motif, and the only reoccurring object is the pocket watches.
By the late 1970’s, the painting was in poor condition, having suffered repeated damage and numerous repairs. From 1978 to 1999, a major restoration project was done, and the painting was eventually, after twenty-one years, returned to display. However, major changes in “colors, tones, and some facial shapes” were noted by the critics. Dr. James Beck, an art history professor at Columbia University and founder of Art Watch, claimed that only “18-20% of the painting was actually done by Leonardo’s hand. The rest is the product of the restorers”.