The Last Supper is one of the most iconic and instantly recognizable paintings from one of the most iconic and recognizable artist of all time Leonardo da Vinci. This painting is a masterpiece of the Renaissance era. It was commissioned by Duke Ludovico Sforza for the monastery of Santa Maria delle Graize in Milan. Leonardo painted it by using an oil and tempera mix and applied that mix to a dry wall. His decision to do this was based on the fact that he wanted it to look like an oil painting. Unfortunately even during his own life time the painting began to wear down. More damage was created onto the painting when in the seventeenth century a door was cut into the bottom of the painting. One of the main reasons it started to wear down was because he decided to paint on the walls in layers instead of a true fresco technique. …show more content…
The piece shows Jesus Christ’s last meal with his apostles before Judas informs the authorities on the identity of Jesus. Jesus informs his apostles that one of them will betray him. We also see both Jesus and Judas both reaching toward a plate that lies between them even though Judas backs away it is still very telling of the situation at hand here. In the painting there lies many symbolic references. Da Vinci shows attributes to identify each apostle. For example as previously mentioned Judas is because he shown reaching for a plate that is next to Jesus. As well as because he is holding a purse that has his reward for identifying Christ the next day. Peter who sits next to Judas holds a knife in his right hand which is foreshadowing that he will cut off the ear of a soldier as he tries to protect Christ from being arrested the following day after the supper. In the windows behind the meal that is going on Da Vinci shown a landscape that is often thought of as paradise. This suggests that this heavenly paradise can only be reached through