[Connected Travelogue #431] Overwhelmed by a Rush of Famous Paintings, Enjoying the 'Chaotic Painting of a Collection of Proverbs' [Otsuka Museum of Art]

Last time, I was shocked by the sheer variety of 'Annunciations' and learned how interesting it is to see the same motif depicted in so many different ways.

So, this time, let's take a look at various masterpieces from the Renaissance period.

The one that appeared before my eyes immediately was... 'The School of Athens'!!

Raphael painted this work, which is located on the wall of a room in the Vatican Palace.

Bringing together famous philosophers from history in one place, this painting is said to feature Plato on the left and Aristotle on the right, conversing in the center.

However, even though it depicts various philosophers, there are no clear documents explaining who is who, so it seems we have to guess based on the atmosphere.

And within this painting, Raphael's own figure is also depicted. ↓

Well, I worry that saying it like this might invite criticism like, 'Why are you sneaking yourself in among famous philosophers! Don't get carried away!,' but there is actually a reason for this.

What Raphael painted was Apelles, a painter who was active around 330 BC.

Apelles was a painter who was praised tremendously, but since not a single one of his paintings exists today, we cannot recognize his greatness ourselves.

So, he used himself as a model to depict that legendary painter shrouded in mystery.

Hmm, his defense against criticism is perfect!! (...or is it?)

Well, no one would complain to a painter capable of painting the Vatican Palace, right!

This is also a work by Raphael, painted in a three-layer structure.

In the top layer is God, the second layer consists of
Christ, the Virgin Mary, and John, and the third layer consists of
famous people on earth, is the composition.

This is also a work by Raphael called "Coronation of the Virgin," and it depicts the death of the Virgin and her glory in heaven.

The Virgin's body has transformed into lilies (purity) and roses (love), and she is receiving the crown of the Queen of Heaven from Christ in heaven.

But what on earth is this "something like an angel" ...?

No, Raphael also depicts angels with human-like bodies normally.

In other words, this must be one of the variations of angels.

(If a bunch of these came flying at me, I would cry)

And I discovered the famous "Birth of Venus"!

The size is about 1.7m x 2.8m, which is a much larger painting than I had imagined.

I realized that you really can't tell the sense of scale from reference books.

And then, after passing through a zone where the skin-tone element suddenly increased...!

Now, what I found interesting is this painting called "Netherlandish Proverbs".

It is said that this work by Pieter Bruegel the Elder depicts about 100 proverbs handed down in the Netherlands.

Because of that, it presents a terribly chaotic appearance, but that's what makes it interesting, right!

I personally like this chaotic painting as well, so I can't help but feel it would be interesting to do the same with proverbs from various countries.

I would love to see a Japanese version of this...!

(By the way, it seems Wikipedia has about 80 explanations listed, so please check it out if you're interested.) ↓

Incidentally, does Pieter Bruegel the Elder, the creator of this painting, like fitting a massive amount of things into one frame? In his work 'Children's Games,' he depicts 'a work where 100 children are playing various games in a plaza.'

Hmm... this is great!! (Though I don't really know what most of them are doing)

I've definitely added one more favorite painter to my list...!

Well then, having spent so much time carefully looking at just one painting, let's head to the next floor.

And there, I found...!

Isn't this Leonardo da Vinci's 'The Last Supper'!

Wow, it's incredibly huge!! (4.2 x 9.1m)

Note that 'The Last Supper' began to deteriorate from the moment it was painted due to the painting technique, and it seems it was repeatedly touched up with brushes over the original starting in the 18th century.

On top of that, it is said that it fell into an even more miserable state due to an air raid in 1943.

But however, if you look at the wall on the opposite side of this painting...!?

W-wait, another 'The Last Supper'!?

No, wait a minute... this one is a bit cleaner!!

Yes, this version of 'The Last Supper' is what it looks like after 20 years of removing dirt and added brushstrokes.

On this floor, you can see both the pre-restoration and post-restoration 'The Last Supper' at full scale—a truly luxurious experience...!

And from here, the rush of Leonardo da Vinci works begins!

At the actual Louvre Museum, the "Mona Lisa" is so crowded and you can't see it this close up, but here you can see it from an extremely close distance.

It is a luxury that is only possible because these are replica ceramic board paintings.

Thank goodness...!

Furthermore, the explanatory text is at such a high level that I have no idea what it's saying at all.

No, but still, I was able to experience a space where a life-sized Mona Lisa exists.

I feel like I've somehow unlocked a trophy in life...! (Even if it's not the real thing)

With that said, the exhibits where you can savor the world of famous paintings that everyone knows are far from over.

While looking forward to unexpected encounters with painters I didn't know in future exhibits,

To be continued in the next installment!!