Giovedi 05.01.09

It's been raining here since it stopped snowing but today we ventured out after class to see The Last Supper which was painted on the wall of a monastery's dining room by da Vinci himself. He completed it with amazingly accurate perspective, giving the monks the sensation that they were dining in the presence of Christ. When I entered, I had to force my eyes to believe that it was only 2D because it looked so real.

Only 25 can enter at once and each group can only stay for 15 minutes after they have been de-humidified and de-dusted. These precautions are necessary to preserve the painting since it wasn't done as a traditional fresco. In fact, it deteriorated so much in da Vinci's lifetime that he gave his blessing for the monks to cut a doorway through to another room. This is why we can no longer see Christ's feet in the center of the piece.

The emotional depth is so mindblowing despite how faded the colors are - each apostle's personality is reflected in both their facial expressions and body language. If you've read The Da Vinci Code, you're familiar with the alternative theories and all that mumbo jumbo, but in the presence of such as masterpiece, you focus on the simple things. My favorite symbols are Christ's hands. First, the right one is palm down, gesturing to a glass of wine (his blood) and the left is palm up, gesturing to a piece of bread (his body). These same motions demonstrate his place as intermediary between the divine and the mortal worlds. As you look at him, you have no doubt that da Vinci's greatest achievement with this work was how he focused all attention and emotion around one subject. Everything revolves around this solitary, calm, yet loving figure.