A 20 year restoration process was completed in 1999 (same year they finished the equally long Sistine Chapel restoration), so the colors were remarkably more vibrant than I expected. (side note: I haven’t posted our experience in the Sistine Chapel, but we saw it, its more than worthy of its historical hype & I’m looking forward to sharing it) I should mention here that the above picture is simply a shot of the post card I bought; photography in this church is likely classified as a crime, so this gal kept her camera in the bag!
The Italians refer to their national treasure as the Cenacolo Vinciano (which, phonetically is something like this: Chen-awk-co-lo Vin-chiano). Viewers are taken in small groups through 2 sets of glass doors that form enclosed square rooms; each set of doors open, only when the doors behind the group automatically close, and each group is only allowed 15 minutes with this sacred painting.
Perhaps the Italians guard it so intently because they almost lost it completely during WWII. While being hammered by enemy fire, a bomb was dropped on the church, which destroyed it and the immediate surrounding area....when the dust and debris settled, the Lord’s Last Supper remained intact and standing on one side, and directly opposite was this other wall, showing a compelling fresco of the crucifixion, painted the same year Da Vinci began his, 1495. This too is merely a picture of my postcard, so it doesn't convey to the viewer it's significant size, which is a big part of what draws in a viewer. This artist used the traditional fresco techniques (painting on wet plaster), so it's not had the fading issues suffered by the Last Supper.
I tried to clear my mind entirely and picture the WWII scene....tried to imagine being among those ruins with the worst of that day's bombing having ceased and people slowly coming out from wherever they sought shelter and escape...still gripped by the adrenaline of survival as they attempted to survey the damage, and there, where their church used to stand, this known wall of Jesus breaking bread, warning of treason among them, a chilling foreshadowing of the very next scene they see as they gaze at the only other standing wall in this part of their broken town: Montorfano's Crocifissione. It was a bold reminder and expression of Christ's ultimate sacrifice. I can't truly imagine the magnitude of that moment for those present...the loosening and gradual release of gut-filled fear as some would have surely realized that they were on holy ground. I imagine my own presence in that place and moment, and if I had been fortunate enough to have shoes in that wanton time, I would have had to remove them as I stepped closer and would have dropped to knees in holy release. Had that bomb been dropped with the slightest of shifts to the right or left, those walls would have gone down like all the rest. But it wasn't, and they didn't.
What do I do with this beautiful intersection of faith and history; it's all the same story of course, and only a silly modern notion to compartmentalize and separate them. When considered in light of Da Vinci's intentional choosing of this faulty artistic technique, the "dry" fresco, and his reasons for doing so, I have to smile and marvel at the speculative cohesion of it all. He chose this uncommon approach for this painting because he wanted creative and editing license in the midst of his work; he wanted to be able to make changes as he worked. He painted this most famous scene from 1495 to 1498; and that doesn't include all the years he had studied all previous church iconography , and the various artist's rendering of the same subject, in mere preparation for beginning this work.
During his thoughtful studies, he noticed that every artist painted this scene from the moment when Judas was identified as the traitor; he wanted to capture the moment before that; the one of painful uncertainty and confusion among the Apostles as they were shocked by Jesus' words. He then spent 4 years striving to perfect their expressions & gestures at this moment when Christ announces inevitable treason. 4 years with this painting - 4 years of taking steps forward, painting many strokes back....painting a portion of it, then painting over it, then changing this angle, mixing that hue of paint, standing back for reconsideration, and on and on.
It's remarkable and beautiful and an example worth lingering over; to consider a man so long driven in using his unusually gifted talents, ultimately, for the glory of God. And call me a hopeless romantic of sorts in my speculating, but I have to believe that the Lord WAS truly honored in this way and on that dreadful bomb-filled day, Providence held those walls firm and gifted the world with this legacy for those with eyes to see. And my prayer was that God would continue to give me eyes to see, because I know there is more of His grace and legacy that goes on around me always, but I often lack the eyes to see it.
We wandered back to the Metro, thought-full from our day and somewhat melancholy, knowing we'd be having our own last supper of sorts when we returned to Orta that evening. It was a chilly evening, so different from when we'd arrived the month before, and Denise had already prepared a wonderful Italian soup; she directed Ashley in making the cornbread and of course, we poured the vino to make the meal complete!
Roses from the garden; and isn't this just like friendship? Friends are the roses, the brilliant colors and soft textures, the sweet kindnesses from the garden of what would otherwise be a drab and much too hard kind of life. God does this; He plants countless seeds in the gardens of our life & then gives us the opportunity to participate in its beautiful harvest...
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