Analysis of Andrea Del Castagno's "last Supper"

Early Life of the Artist

        Born in 1419 the village of Castagno, near Florence, Andrea di Castagno worked as both an oil painter and fresco artist influenced primarily by Tommaso Masaccio and Giotto di Bondone. He first moved to Florence in 1440, but also completed frescoes in Venice from about 1442-1444, after which he once again returned to Florence. Castagno was a highly-skilled oil painter famous for his masterful and realistic representations of the human form.^[1] The biographer Giorgio Visari claims that the artist murdered Domenico Veneziano, a contemporary of Castagno from whom the artist learned the secrets of oil painting, in order to become the only oil painting master in town and thus monopolize the trade. However, this is unlikely, as official records dictate that Veneziano died long after Castagno contracted the bubonic plague and died in 1461.^[2] Castagno first gained attention for his work on the exterior walls of the Bargello—which at the time was still being used a prison—for his provocative depictions of hanged men. The renowned decoration earned him the nickname “Andreino degli Impiccati”, or Little Andrea of the Hanged Men.^[3] The “hanged men” referred to by Castagno’s nickname were captured Milanese soldiers who were hung after the Battle of Anghiari between Florentine and Milanese forces in June of 1440, during the Wars in Lombardy. The battle resulted in a Florentine victory, securing Florence’s dominion over central Italy.^[4]

Influences

        The greatest influences upon Castagno’s work were Tommasso Masaccio and Giotto. Their influence is evidenced in Castagno’s masterful use of realistic perspective in architectural space, as well as the expressive posture and dynamic poses of the characters depicted in his paintings. Though Castagno’s the identities of Castagno’s teachers are uncertain, scholars conjecture that he also may have been influenced by Filippo Lippi, another master of illusionistic perspective, as well as Paolo Uccello (to whom Castagno’s “Last Supper” fresco would later be incorrectly attributed to).^[5] Though Castagno was doubtless an instrumental force in propelling his Florentine contemporaries away from the International Gothic style and perpetuating the important perspectival revolution begun by Masaccio, the avenues of his artistic education remain shrouded in mystery.

History of the Convent of Sant’Apollonia

        The convent of Sant’Apollonia, founded around 1340, once housed a cloistered order of Benedictine nuns, as well as the famous “Last Supper” fresco by del Castagno among other works. Fresco located at the end of the refectory, a hall used for community meals similar to our modern notion of a cafeteria, beneath another section which was whitewashed. The convent was suppressed a religious order starting in 1866, at which point in time the facility became a temporary storehouse for military equipment. In 1891, the refectory space of this former convent was once again made open to the public, but the official Castagno museum was not established until 1911. Though the whitewashed frescoes were restored in the 1960’s, the convent remains fragmented as sections of the facility were transformed into offices and classrooms for use by the University of Florence.^[6] Other frescoes were eventually found above this one, depicting scenes of Christ’s crucifixion, entombment, and resurrection. Originally attributed to another artist, Paolo Uccello, the actual artist was eventually revealed: del Castagno. Though it was somewhat unusual that the fresco was commissioned by a group of nuns, the female patrons of this community came from some of Florence’s wealthiest and most influential families and could thus afford to commission one of the city’s best contemporary painters to decorate their refectory.^[7] This fresco is unusual interest to art scholars studying the role of women in monastic patronage; typically, the potential artistic output associated with a group of female patrons would include works that are “miniature in scale”, such as manuscript illuminations, textile embroideries, or papier-mâché—visual objects that are impermanent, only occasional in purpose, or marginal in quality. The fact that Castagno’s fresco has been lavished which so much scholarly attention is therefore of great modern social significance.^[8]

The Painting of The Last Supper

        Castagno began work on the fresco after his return from Venice in 1444. Castagno likely began work on the fresco around 1447. There is noticeable evidence of the rich color palette that defined his Venetian painting influence: marble panels that decorate the trompe-l’oeil walls of the scene and contrast the plain white tablecloth. The formal qualities of the painting draw upon established visual tradition rather than exploring new themes, so as to better “inspire piety and devotion.”^[9] Inspiring piety and devotion would have been very important, since the nuns of the convent would likely encounter this fresco several times a day at meals, and unlike an altarpiece, a fresco cannot be obstructed from view or sectionally hidden away; the nuns would be forced to confront and contemplate the spiritual significance of the full work.