Leo Martínez
The Mona Lisa, painted by Leonardo da Vinci, is a half-length portrait of a woman and is one of the most famous works of art in the world. The painting measures 30 by 21 inches (approximately 77 by 53 centimetres) and is painted in oil on a white poplar panel. The modest size of the painting has surprised many visitors to the Louvre Museum in Paris, where it is housed, given its immense reputation.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Height | 79.2cm on the right, 79.1cm on the left, and 79.4cm in the middle |
| Width | 53.3cm at the top, and 53.4cm at the bottom |
| Painting Size | 30" x 21" (77 x 53.2 cm) |
| Panel Size | 79.4 x 53.4 x 1.4 cm |
| Medium | Oil paints on a poplar wood panel |
| Ownership | Owned by the French government and housed in the Louvre Museum in Paris |
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What You'll Learn
The painting measures 30 x 21 (77 x 53 cm)
The Mona Lisa, painted by the Italian artist Leonardo da Vinci, is a half-length portrait of a woman. It is one of the most famous works of art in the world, known for the enigmatic expression of its subject, the monumentality of its composition, the subtle modelling of forms, and the atmospheric illusionism. The painting measures 30 x 21 inches, or 77 x 53 centimetres. It is painted in oil on a poplar panel.
The Mona Lisa's modest size stands in contrast to its immense reputation. The painting has had a significant cultural impact, inspiring numerous cultural depictions, including an opera, films, and a song by Nat King Cole. It holds the Guinness World Record for the highest known painting insurance valuation in history at US$100 million in 1962, equivalent to $1 billion as of 2023.
The painting's frame has been altered several times throughout its history. In 1909, the art collector Comtesse de Béhague gave the portrait its current frame, a Renaissance-era work consistent with the historical period of the Mona Lisa. The painting was fitted with a flexible oak frame with beech crosspieces in 1951 to prevent warping and swelling. The crosspieces were replaced with maple in 1970 and then with sycamore in 2004-2005.
The Mona Lisa has also undergone several restorations. In 1913, after its theft, Denizard was called upon to clean the painting without solvent and touch up several scratches with watercolour. In 1952, the varnish layer over the background was evened out. After an attack in 1956, restorer Jean-Gabriel Goulinat touched up the damage to the Mona Lisa's left elbow with watercolour.
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It's painted on poplar wood
The Mona Lisa is painted on a poplar wood panel, a common material during the Renaissance. The poplar tree was frequently found in Lombardy, Italy, where Leonardo da Vinci is thought to have sourced the wood.
Poplar was a suitable surface for da Vinci's sfumato style, which required a smooth substrate. The painting's brushstrokes are so subtle that they are invisible, and the smooth grain of poplar would have been ideal for this technique.
The poplar panel has shown some signs of warping over the years, likely due to resistance to its original frame and braces added by early restorers. To prevent the widening of a small crack near the centre of the upper edge of the painting, restorers added dovetails to the back of the painting and pasted heavy canvas over the crack.
The Mona Lisa was fitted with a flexible oak frame in 1951 to prevent further warping. The frame exerts pressure on the panel to keep it from warping further. In addition to the flexible frame, the painting has had many different decorative frames throughout its history.
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The frame has changed over time
The Mona Lisa, painted by Leonardo da Vinci, is one of the most famous works of art in the world. The painting has had a tumultuous history, surviving theft, vandalism, and war. The frame has changed several times over the years, reflecting its journey.
The Mona Lisa was initially painted on a poplar panel, a common material during the Renaissance. However, the panel expanded and contracted with changes in humidity, leading to warping and cracking. In the mid-18th to early 19th centuries, two butterfly-shaped walnut braces were inserted to stabilise a crack that had formed. Unfortunately, the upper brace fell out sometime between 1888 and 1905, and the painting was further damaged during its theft in 1911. After its recovery, restorer Eugène Denizard was tasked with repairing the painting, touching up scratches with watercolour and revarnishing the edges to mask areas previously covered by an older frame.
In 1951, the Mona Lisa was fitted with a flexible oak frame with beech crosspieces to prevent further warping. This frame was designed to exert pressure on the panel and was used in addition to the decorative frame. However, the beechwood was later found to be infested with insects, so it was replaced with maple in 1970. The maple crosspieces, in turn, were replaced with sycamore ones in 2004-2005 by a conservation and study team. An additional metal crosspiece was also added to allow for scientific measurement of the panel's warp.
The current decorative frame on the Mona Lisa is a Renaissance-era work presented to the portrait in 1909 by art collector Comtesse de Béhague. This frame is consistent with the historical period of the painting.
The Mona Lisa has had a long and eventful history, and the changes to its frame reflect the efforts made to preserve and protect this iconic work of art. The various interventions, from the walnut braces to the flexible oak frame, demonstrate the ongoing conservation challenges posed by the painting's delicate poplar panel support.
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The painting has warped and been treated for insect infestations
The Mona Lisa, a half-length portrait painted in oil on a white poplar panel, is approximately 77 cm by 53 cm (30 inches by 21 inches). The painting has been stored in various frames throughout its history, and its support expands and contracts with changes in humidity, causing the picture to warp.
In 1951, a flexible oak frame with beech crosspieces was added to prevent further warping. However, in 1970, it was discovered that the beechwood had become infested with insects, and the crosspieces were replaced with maple. Unfortunately, in 1977, a new insect infestation was discovered in the back of the panel, caused by the crosspieces installed to stabilise the painting and prevent warping. This infestation was treated with carbon tetrachloride and ethylene oxide.
The warping of the Mona Lisa is a result of the natural expansion and contraction of the poplar panel with changes in humidity. While it is normal for paintings on wood to bend into a concave shape over time, the Mona Lisa has begun to distort more in one direction than the other. This could be due to a slight change in heat, light, or humidity conditions. The Louvre, where the painting is housed, takes great care to control these factors to prevent damage to the artwork.
In addition to the issues of warping and insect infestation, the Mona Lisa has undergone various conservation treatments over the years. Despite never having been fully restored, it has been well-maintained and is considered to be in a remarkable state of preservation. Treatments have included watercolour retouches, cleaning, and varnish applications. The painting has also been protected by a bulletproof glass case, with strict climate-controlled conditions to maintain a stable environment and prevent future infestations and warping.
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The subject's identity is uncertain
The Mona Lisa is a half-length portrait painting by the Italian artist Leonardo da Vinci. It is considered an archetypal masterpiece of the Italian Renaissance and is one of the most valuable paintings in the world. The painting's novel qualities include the subject's enigmatic expression, the monumentality of the composition, the subtle modelling of forms, and the atmospheric illusionism.
The subject's identity has never been proven and is a source of ongoing investigation and fascination. The title of the painting, which is known in English as Mona Lisa, is based on the presumption that it depicts Lisa del Giocondo, although her likeness is uncertain. Renaissance art historian Giorgio Vasari wrote that "Leonardo undertook to paint, for Francesco del Giocondo, the portrait of Mona Lisa, his wife." Monna in Italian is a polite form of address, similar to "Ma'am", "Madam", or "my lady" in English. This became "madonna", and its contraction "monna". The title of the painting is spelled in Italian as "Monna Lisa" ("mona" being a vulgarity in Italian), which is rare in English, where it is traditionally spelled "Mona".
Lisa del Giocondo was a member of the Gherardini family of Florence and Tuscany, and the wife of wealthy Florentine silk merchant Francesco del Giocondo. The painting is thought to have been commissioned for their new home and to celebrate the birth of their second son, Andrea. That identity was first suggested in 1550 by artist biographer Giorgio Vasari and is the most widely accepted theory. However, it has been disputed by scholars who argue that Lisa del Giocondo was the subject of a different portrait.
Several other people have been proposed as the subject of the painting, including Isabella of Aragon, Cecilia Gallerani, Costanza d'Avalos, Duchess of Francavilla, Pacifica Brandano/Brandino, Isabella Gualanda, Caterina Sforza, Bianca Giovanna Sforza, Salai, and even Leonardo himself. Psychoanalyst Sigmund Freud theorized that Leonardo imparted an approving smile from his mother, Caterina, onto the Mona Lisa. Another theory is that the model may have been Leonardo's mother, Caterina. This interpretation was put forth by Freud, who seemed to think that the Mona Lisa’s mysterious smile emerged from a perhaps unconscious memory of Caterina’s smile.
In 1987, artist and researcher Lillian Schwartz noticed that the face of the Mona Lisa aligns remarkably well with Leonardo da Vinci’s self-portrait. The alignment is too precise to be coincidental, suggesting that Leonardo intentionally incorporated elements of his own face into the Mona Lisa.
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Frequently asked questions
The Mona Lisa painting measures 30 x 21 inches or 77 x 53 cm. The wood panel the painting is on has slightly uneven dimensions: 79.4 x 53.4 x 1.4 cm. The height varies between 79.1 and 79.4 cm, and the width varies between 53.2 and 53.4 cm.
The Mona Lisa is indeed small compared to its immense reputation.
Due to aging, the width of the Mona Lisa has shrunk from its original 55.5 cm to 53.2 cm.
The wood panel of the painting is slightly uneven, with the height being taller on the right (79.2 cm) and the left being slightly shorter (79.1 cm).
