Paintings

                                                       

Mona Lisa (also known as La Gioconda or La Joconde) is a sixteenth-century portrait painted in oil on a poplar panel in Florence, Italy by Leonardo di ser Piero da Vinci during the Renaissance. The work is currently owned by the Government of France and is on display at the Louvre museum in Paris under the title Portrait of Lisa Gherardini, wife of Francesco del Giocondo. Arguably, it is the most famous and iconic painting in the world.

              The painting is a half-length portrait and depicts a woman whose facial expression is frequently described as enigmatic. Others believe that the slight smile is an indication that the subject is hiding a secret. The ambiguity of the subject's expression, the monumentality of the composition, and the subtle modeling of forms and atmospheric illusionism were novel qualities that have contributed to the continuing fascination and study of the work. In 1911, it was stolen and copied; the copies were sold as the genuine painting. It was recovered in 1913.

                    In the Christian Gospels, the Last Supper was the last meal Jesus shared with his Twelve Apostles and disciples before his death. The Last Supper has been the subject of many paintings, of which that by Leonardo da Vinci is perhaps best known.

                     According to what Paul the Apostle recounted in 1 Corinthians 11:23–26, in the course of the Last Supper, and with specific reference to eating bread and drinking from a cup, Jesus told his disciples, "Do this in remembrance of me". In the Synoptic Gospels, Jesus institutes a new covenant of his blood and body, the wine and bread. Many Christians describe this as the "Institution of the Eucharist" (see Maundy Thursday). Scholars have looked to the Last Supper as the source of early Christian Eucharist traditions.Others see the account of the Last Supper as derived from 1st-century eucharistic practice as described as early as the mid-50s of that century (the date of the writing of 1 Corinthians), 20-25 years after the death of Jesus. The Gospel of John recounts, instead of the institution of this new covenant with wine and bread, Jesus' washing of the disciples' feet, and also depicts Jesus as speaking at length in his farewell discourse about his divine role.

A typical Filipina country woman as portrayed by Amorsolo. This painting also demonstrates his characteristic backlighting technique.