Name 10th Grade Reading Comprehension
moment when Jesus tells the Twelve Apostles that
Famous Paintings of
Leonardo da Vinci
Leonardo da Vinci is one of the most well-known
figures of the Italian Renaissance. In fact, adept as a
painter, sculptor, architect, inventor, engineer, and
draftsman, da Vinci epitomizes the “Renaissance
man.” His artistic work was informed by his scientific
studies and keen observations of nature. Though
best known as a painter, we have only a few dozen
paintings that can be attributed to him. His best-
known works include the “The Last Supper” and the
“Mona Lisa.”
“The Last Supper” was commission by Ludovico
Sforza, the Duke of Milan, in 1495, to grace the back
wall of a monastery dining hall. da Vinci worked for
three years on the painting, which shows the
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one of them will soon betray him. Because daVinci
used tempera and oil on dried plaster, instead of
the conventional fresco on plaster, the painting has
deteriorated considerably over time. It was further
damaged by improper attempts at restoration.
Modern conversation techniques, however, have
allowed the painting to be stabilized.
Eight years later, da Vinci began his best-known
painting, the “Mona Lisa,” done in da Vinci’s
sfumato technique, in which subtle gradations,
rather than strict borders, infuse paintings with a
softer, smoky aura. It depicts a young woman of
uncertain identify, with a slight smile that has
captivated viewers for centuries. Accounts from an
early biographer, however, suggest that the subject
of the “Mona Lisa” is Lisa del Giocondo, the wife of
a wealthy Florentine silk merchant, a theory that is
supported by the painting’s original name — “La
Gioconda.” For da Vinci, the painting remained a
work in progress, and if the painting was
commissioned, the commissioner never received it,
as it remained in da Vinci’s posession. Today it can
be seen in the Louvre Museum in Paris, where it is
protected behind bulletproof glass and revered as a
national treasure.