D.) Scan a painting and interpret.

Mona Lisa
a. Leonardo da Vinci (1452-1519)
b. Word of interpretation
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, wife of Francesco del Giocondo, a Florentine
dignitary and wealthy silk merchant. Vasari also mentioned that Leonardo employed
musicians and troubadours to keep her amused, which might explain her enigmatic
smile. As usual, Leonardo procrastinated endlessly over the painting - notably the
position of the subject's hands - and continued working on it for another 20 years.
Sadly, La Gioconda has become so famous and so valuable that it is almost
impossible to catch more than a quick glimpse of her, as she sits inscrutably in the
Louvre behind the non-reflective glass of her temperature-controlled security box.
c. Style of interpretation
The Mona Lisa's main focus is on the face of the painting. The techniques of
chiaroscuro, using lights and darks and sfumato (blending one tone to another) or
the illusion of corners that allows the imagination to see the area in a different way,
was introduced and used by Da Vinci in his painting (Mona Lisa painted from 15031507, (n.d.)). These techniques, that were achieved by using oil paints, were used
on the face and the hands to make the person appear to be more real and almost as
if she has movement. The smile that is so famous and adds to the mystery of her
mood is also achieved by these techniques. While some viewers see the woman
smiling others see her without a smile.
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 picture.
Another slightly surreal feature of the Mona Lisa is her lack of eyebrows and
eyelashes. This was not a deliberate act of the artist, as scans indicate that
originally she was given both. It is possible that the colour 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).

d. explain the ff. elements of painting you presented in terms of

1.) line
The curves in the background with the paths, rivers and mountains are a small
reflection of the curves in her hair and clothes. It is believed that Da Vinci was
working on "some of his finest sketches of plant life and nature" (Mona Lisa, painted
from 1503-1507, (n.d.)), when he worked on the painting.
2.) Shape
The pyramid design, which was commonly used, also helps the viewer to focus on
the women. It is believed that the pyramid gives a representation of giving tribute
to the father, the son and the Holy Spirit. Mona Lisa's pose is that of a pyramid
shape with her head, shoulders and hands (Mona Lisa, La Giaconda, (n.d.)). There is
also a glow on the face, neck and hands that puts an emphasis on those
3.) color
The figure in the painting is emphasized by the light and dark tones of the wardrobe
as well as the background. The face and body have lighter tones on them with
smooth lines; gone are the days of outlined figures. The background does not reflect
heaven or spiritual symbols but that of nature, which was another emphasis of the
time.
Leonardo was fascinated by the way light falls on curved surfaces. The gauzy veil,
Mona Lisa's hair, the luminescence of her skin all are created with layers of
transparent color, each only a few molecules thick, making the lady's face appear to
glow, and giving the painting an ethereal, almost magical quality.
4.) Perspective
The portrait shows the subject sitting upright and sideways in a chair, with her face
and chest turned slightly towards the viewer: a posture derived from the 'pyramid'
image used to depict a sitting Madonna. 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. In the Mona Lisa he experimented
with the landscape. The two different parts of the landscape are very often seen
from the perspective of two separate levels, the higher landscape and the lower

landscape. The two perspectives have an active part to the completeness of the
painting, both on the lefthand- and righthand- sides of the landscape, behind Mona
Lisa. This was an experiment that Lionardo painted to bring the landscape in line
with Mona Lisa . This picture is yet another example of Lionardo's scientific
experiments and thoughts. If we all, spectators and analysts, try to contemplate
Lionardo's paintings in his own way, as described in Codex Madrid 1 and 2, then we
will realise that the landscape and the figures are in accordance with one another.

5.) Symbol
Leonardo painted a true representation of the women of the time. The woman's face
is free of facial hair including her eyebrows. At this time it was common for women
of the time to pluck their eyebrows because some feel they were unsightly. When
Leonarod did this it makes the person very real (Mona Lisa, La Giaconda, (n.d.).The
woman seems to be seated in a chair on some sort of balcony. The pillars to the side
of the balcony almost form a frame to the figure behind the woman is a landscaped
background.