![]() ![]() What is not clear is the identity of this location. The subject of the Mona Lisa sits in front of a landscape featuring trees, pathways. The 'Mona Lisa' on display at the Louvre. Where is the landscape in the background of the Mona Lisa? Leonardo makes no direct mention of the painting in his own notes, so it remains unknown what title (if any) he would have given it himself. The Mona element of the title is also a misspelling of Monna, an Italian term used at the time to denote a woman of high status (a contraction of the term mia donna, or “my lady” in English). He discussed it in his biography of Leonardo in Lives of the Most Eminent Italian Architects, Painters, and Sculptors, more commonly known as Lives of the Artists (1550): “Leonardo undertook to execute, for Francesco del Giocondo, the portrait of Mona Lisa, his wife.” Vasari’s account is the first known use of the now-famous name, and he does not claim the work actually had this title, merely using it to describe the work in general (“the portrait of Mona Lisa, his wife”). The writings of the art historian Giorgio Vasari contain one of the earliest accounts of the work. The fame of the title Mona Lisa obscures an important fact: There is no evidence whatsoever of Leonardo himself using it. What title (if any) did Leonardo da Vinci actually give the painting? ![]() Here is a look at five unresolved mysteries surrounding the Mona Lisa. But despite all we do know about this work of art, there are still a number of lingering questions. The Mona Lisa, painted by Leonardo da Vinci in the early 16th century, has often been described as the most famous painting in the world.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |