Leonardo da Vinci’s painting, Mona Lisa is arguably his most famous painting in his extensive canon; in my opinion, it also happens to be the least interesting piece of art in his catalogue. The overexposure this painting has received since the 16th century has detracted all the beauty and mystery this painting may have offered at one time. When I look at images of the Mona Lisa I feel completely apathetic to the painting. It in no way moves me or evokes any type of emotion from me. I believe that it is because I have become so habituated to this image that I cannot appreciate its legacy as one of the most famous works of art in the history of mankind.
To begin with, if I were to analyze the banality of this painting then I would start with the fact that the woman in the painting is plain and almost masculine in quality. She is neither striking nor interesting to gaze upon. It has been theorized that da Vinci purposefully included his own likeness in the painting, or that of his homosexual lover. Even with the possibility of that being the case, the woman in the painting is plain to the eye, and therefore unappealing. She is not ugly or grotesque in the intricate way that Picasso portrays some of his female subjects, instead Mona Lisa is simply boring.
Furthermore, the conspiracy behind da Vinci put forth by Dan Brown in his novel The Da Vinci Code has made me appreciate this painting even less. Brown’s fabricated drama about da Vinci’s life and paintings detracts focus from the skill and mastery of da Vinci as an artist and makes me less interested in his work in general. The Mona Lisa has become pedestrian through its overexposure in our culture, with its image being plastered on everything from posters to coffee mugs. Seeing this image on such trivial everyday items and given the fact that the painting lacks vibrant colors and has such a simplistic subject matter make this highly acclaimed work of art as moving as a postcard.
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