Perfect Blue
Banned
GENEVA The mystery behind the most enigmatic smile in art Leonardo da Vincis Mona Lisa just got a little more complicated.
In a coming-out party of sorts in Geneva, rounds of flashbulbs popped Thursday as the non-profit Mona Lisa Foundation pulled back the curtain to present what it claims is a predecessor of the worlds most famous portrait.
But even the experts brought in by the foundation werent sure about that claim just yet.
The art world is prone to all sorts of rumours and speculation and, periodically discoveries that jolt accepted norms. Two years ago, a retired French electrician claimed that he had turned up 271 Picasso works that had been sitting for decades in his garage and Picassos heirs claimed theft.
But a new claim about the worlds most famous painting, which draws millions of visitors to Paris Louvre Museum each year, resonates like a thunderclap in the art world. It also prompts a new look at a painting that all by itself still raises a lot of questions for experts not least the timeless, Is she smiling or not?
The Isleworth Mona Lisa features a dark-haired young woman with her arms crossed against a distant backdrop. The foundation insists its no copy but an earlier version of the Louvre masterpiece.
At the presentation, Alessandro Vezzosi, director of the Museo Ideale Leonardo da Vinci, said the painting was intriguing but needs further study. He declined to line up behind the foundations claims that it was truly a Mona Lisa predecessor painted by da Vinci.
The Isleworth Mona Lisa is an important work of art deserving respect and strong consideration as well as a scientific, historic and artistic debate among specialists rather than a purely media interest, he said.
Scientific tests dont demonstrate the authenticity [and] the autography of a painting, but demonstrate its from a certain era, whether the techniques are similar or not, Vezzosi told The Associated Press in French. Here, there are many open questions, before waving his hand over the painting, as a security guard with folded arms stood nearby.
More here: http://news.nationalpost.com/2012/09/28/isleworth-mona-lisa-possible-predecessor-to-da-vincis-most-famous-portrait-unveiled/
This is incredibly exciting. Do you think it's real GAF?
In a coming-out party of sorts in Geneva, rounds of flashbulbs popped Thursday as the non-profit Mona Lisa Foundation pulled back the curtain to present what it claims is a predecessor of the worlds most famous portrait.
But even the experts brought in by the foundation werent sure about that claim just yet.
The art world is prone to all sorts of rumours and speculation and, periodically discoveries that jolt accepted norms. Two years ago, a retired French electrician claimed that he had turned up 271 Picasso works that had been sitting for decades in his garage and Picassos heirs claimed theft.
But a new claim about the worlds most famous painting, which draws millions of visitors to Paris Louvre Museum each year, resonates like a thunderclap in the art world. It also prompts a new look at a painting that all by itself still raises a lot of questions for experts not least the timeless, Is she smiling or not?
The Isleworth Mona Lisa features a dark-haired young woman with her arms crossed against a distant backdrop. The foundation insists its no copy but an earlier version of the Louvre masterpiece.
At the presentation, Alessandro Vezzosi, director of the Museo Ideale Leonardo da Vinci, said the painting was intriguing but needs further study. He declined to line up behind the foundations claims that it was truly a Mona Lisa predecessor painted by da Vinci.
The Isleworth Mona Lisa is an important work of art deserving respect and strong consideration as well as a scientific, historic and artistic debate among specialists rather than a purely media interest, he said.
Scientific tests dont demonstrate the authenticity [and] the autography of a painting, but demonstrate its from a certain era, whether the techniques are similar or not, Vezzosi told The Associated Press in French. Here, there are many open questions, before waving his hand over the painting, as a security guard with folded arms stood nearby.
More here: http://news.nationalpost.com/2012/09/28/isleworth-mona-lisa-possible-predecessor-to-da-vincis-most-famous-portrait-unveiled/
This is incredibly exciting. Do you think it's real GAF?
