Leonardo da Vinci’s Mona Lisa
A reader has asked me what I see when I look at this painting by Leonardo da Vinci.
Ironically, I have never connected with this painting, and there could be many reasons for it.
Perhaps da Vinci didn’t accurately replicate the emotion Mona Lisa was displaying on her face in this portraiture, or he painted her from memory and missed elements or detail to make it realistic?
Mona Lisa’s face just feels empty to me. Her eyes reflect a smile, but no other elements of her face support it. Her mouth has a slight tension about it and a hint of contempt, but again, its not natural or realistic. And her body language conveys a very relaxed person–all conflicting messages to me.
Perhaps da Vinci had conflicting feelings of Mona Lisa as he painted her?
Or he intentionally misaligned her expression to cause mystery?
Many speculate that da Vinci was mentally ill, so maybe he saw the world askew?
I don’t think we’ll ever know.
Many say the painting is enigmatic. To that, I would agree.
You don’t think there is a slight smile in her mouth??? But you say her eyes convey a slight smile?? Did you get the eyes and mouth switched? I think so because her mouth has a slight smile. I think everyone can agree with that.
I don’t see a smile in the mouth, no. Da Vinci put upturned mouth corners but there is something “off” and unnatural about them. It doesn’t say smile to me. If you quickly glance at the photo, you want to make that connection in your mind’s eye, but upon a closer look, its just not there — at least for me.
Very interesting!
I k nd of lik n it to th s. Th wor is red. You can extrapolate what you want to see, but it doesn’t mean it is really there…or that you are interpreting it correctly.
Make sense?
I understand. I also understood without the analogy. 😉
We non-wizards see the upturned corners and think smile even though other elements of what would also naturally occur in a smile are not there. It makes me wonder how you see other famous art pieces, by Michelangelo, for example.
I also wish badly that you could see some of the facial expressions of someone I know. Although I think I already know what your answer would be anyway.
With your help, what I did was cover over the eyes, then look at the smile. Yes, there is something off about the smile. It’s on the verge of a grimace but not quite.
Looking at this portrait just now reminds me of Pam from The Office.
I remember at primary school we had to write about what we thought she was smiling about. I write that she wasn't smiling and that she seemed mean. I got in trouble for saying that so I had to come up with some nonsense reason; I forget what I said.
I paint a sketch as a hobby, and the faces that I paint fascinate me. If one little line is changed in the drawing, it changes the whole personality of the person or animal being painted. He may have been playing around with the portrait and found it interesting, and he may have left it the way it was.