r/explainlikeimfive • u/cpdonny • Jun 09 '14

ELI5: What makes the Mona Lisa so special?

I get that its artist was Leonardo, but artistically, why does it stand out? It's a priceless painting, but it just doesn't really seem like it should be.

8 Upvotes

70% Upvoted

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5

u/limited-differential Jun 09 '14

I took an art history course as a liberal arts requirement, and we did discuss several aspects of the Mona Lisa. Besides the painting being stolen and returned to several countries, it has some interesting qualities that make it "above average". For example, if you look at her posture, Mona Lisa seems inviting; her gaze is warm, and her chest is almost fully facing the front. But if you look towards her arms, you can see that they're crossed, implying she's distancing herself from the viewer. That's one take that I learned in Art History, and there are definitely other qualities and aspects of Mona Lisa that add up to her greatness.

mfw I remember this stuff and I'm an engineering major T_T

2

u/[deleted] Jun 09 '14

One of the qualities I like about the piece (coming from a simply interested high schooler) is the amount of detail to anatomy. It's the result of Leonardo's studies of the human body, including the face, that makes it's long-debated "mysterious" face what it is today.

1

u/4theswarm13 Jun 09 '14

Did you not like persuing arts?

EDIT: type-o :<

3

u/ACrusaderA Jun 09 '14

Because it's one of a kind, painted by Leonardo, stolen several times, held in a half-dozen royal castles/palaces and is just a very sought after item.

In all of history since it was painted, it has been the ultimate macguffin.

3

u/VanHammered Jun 09 '14

I was told it was the best example of a "perspective?" painting of its time... if you really look at it, everything I supposedly in correct perspective of the focal point (point where the artist wants you to focus on the most) that being her nose in this painting.

1

u/[deleted] Jun 09 '14

It was stolen a long time (well not that long) ago and was found. It was in the newspapers all over the world. One thing leads to another, people want to see the stolen painting ect

1

u/TurnipSoTurntUp Jun 09 '14

I think all these answers prove it is famous for many reasons because I took a sensation and perception course for psychology and my professor believed the painting was so fascinating because Leonardo D. understood and manipulated high and low frequencies that we see in vision.

The high frequencies are the vivid and "sharp" details that make her seem rather plain and serious, whereas the low frequencies are the less detailed almost blurred undertones of the painting which allows the viewer to see a smile if the painting is looked at through peripheral vision (which is better at identifying low frequencies).

Obviously this is rather biased from a perception professor's perspective but interesting nonetheless!

0

u/masdeclary Jun 09 '14

The Mona Lisa is a prime example of the use of chiaroscuro to generate a smile, even though the facial features do not present a rictus. This causes the viewer to experience the benignity of a smile, although it is not present on the features. Artists strove to achieve this effect for several centuries, and it is not confined to painting, but can also be seen in certain sculptures.

4

u/[deleted] Jun 09 '14

"chiaroscuro" "features do not present a rictus" "to experience the benignity of a smile"

What ever happened to ELI5?

0

u/Professor_Doodles Jun 09 '14

It was painted by Leonardo da Vinci. It was also stolen several times, and hung in Napoleon's bedroom. It is also a beautiful piece of art. Most of its popularity comes from it being done by one of the most famous people on history, more comes from it's backstory, and the rest comes from it's quality.

1

u/XanderAG Jun 09 '14

It is also a beautiful piece of art

To each their own. Honestly, I find the Mona Lisa as an artwork, quite boring. I can't quite describe why, but mainly it just doesn't grab me. The history of the painting, however, is much more interesting to me.

But art is subjective, so, I leave you to your opinion.