The last supper

The use of overlapping in this painting is utilized to create a sense of depth and three-dimensionality. The main way overlapping is used in this painting is with the table that sits in the middle of the scene that covers most of the apostles bodies. Overlapping is also seen with the bodies themselves, as Christ's body overlaps the table and some the bodies in the background overlap with each other. The use of overlapping in this way helps to create realistic perspective in the painting.

Overlapping

Compositionally, this painting is arranged in a symmetrical way that helps create unity within the painting. One way unity is created is with the repetition of colors featured on the apostles' cloaks. Another way the composition helps to connect the theme of the painting is with the emphasis on the central figures. Most of the disciples face towards Christ, who is one of the central figures in this scene. The focus on Christ is also seen with the eccentric paintings (?) on the back wall. The most eccentric one is placed right by Christ, making the viewer look at him directly.

Composition

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Composition

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This painting is constructed using the fresco technique, which involves painting freshly plaster wall so that the painting becomes apart of the wall. This technique means that the texture of the painting is more smooth and has a matte finish. This helps to create the realistic textures seen within the faces and bodies of the apostles. It also makes the painting durable, so it is able to stay in relatively good condition.

Fresco Technique

Foreshortening is utilized in multiple places throughout the painting, but specifically here with the recession of the side walls to meet the back wall. Foreshortening helps make a painted object appear three dimensional by using mathematically strategic lines to make the object appear like it is receding into space while simultaneously jutting out at the viewer. Here, Castagno does a good job at utilizing foreshortening because the walls look like they are receding into the background, creating a realistic sense of depth, which makes the painting look more naturalistic all around.

Foreshorening

The folds created on Christ and the apostles' clothes show the use of modeling by Castagno. Modeling is the use of highlights and shadows to create a sense of naturalism, and a sense of depth and three dimensionality of the figures. In this painting, the light source comes from two windows on the right side of the painting. Having a light source is important in modeling to help the lighting look cohesive throughout the painting. The windows help to make it appear like the light is coming from one source, and the highlights and shadows are applied accordingly to the figures' clothes to create a naturalistic scene.

Modeling

The hues of the robes that the apostles wear are all relatively similar. The same hues of reds, browns, and greens are featured on all of the characters in this scene, connecting them all in the narrative. The pale reds and pinks on the clothes make the figures stand out against the rich black hues of the chair/bench that they are sitting on. The hues and their varying saturation helps to place emphasis on the importance of the figures in this scene. The use of the colors is different in the clothes of each of the apostles, so while the hues work to unify them, the different use of the hues also help to differentiate the figures from each other.

Hues and saturation

In Andrea del Castagno's painting The Last Supper, Castagno creates an extremely naturalistic scene that exemplifies new Renaissance ideas of perspective and painting technique. Likely inspired by artists such as Masaccio and Giotto, Castagno implemented different techniques such as foreshortening, linear perspective, modeling, and overlapping to portray a scene that appears three-dimensional. Along with this, Castagno used the typical Italian Renaissance painting style of Fresco to create this wall painting. Another pillar of the Renaissance movement is the development of naturalism in representations of Christ, and the portrayal of him as a human being instead of a strictly celestial being. This idea is also represented in this painting as Christ is depicted in a similar way to the apostles. What makes his style unique, however, is the close attention to detail and symmetry seen with the colors throughout the painting. The innovative composition that Castagno created by using apostles' gazes and background images to showcase the center figures also made this painting unique for the time. In summary, Castagno's painting is a perfect representative of the new and developing Italian Renaissance ideas of the time while also incorporating innovative elements of his own.

Conclusion

The representation of the tiled ceiling is an example of how Castagno uses linear perspective in this painting. In linear perspective, real or implied lines (orthogonals) recede into space at proper mathematical intervals to create realistic spatial recession. This is seen on the ceiling where actual lines (orthogonals) go backwards into space, creating an illusion of depth and three-dimensionality in the painting. The recession of this wall and the recession of the chair/bench that the disciples sit on help to make the figures appear to exist in a three dimensional space.

Linear perspective

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