Liza del Giocondo: biography, interesting facts. Mona Lisa painting by Leonardo da Vinci

2024 Author: Leah Sherlock | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 05:25

A lot of great works were created by artists in different eras. Madame Lisa del Giocondo, depicted more than five hundred years ago, is surrounded by such fame that it is perhaps the most famous work in the absolute sense of the word. There is no exaggeration here. But what do we know about the life that Lisa del Giocondo led? Her biography will be presented to your attention.

Family

Antonmaria di Noldo Gherardini - Lisa's father, twice widowed. In his first marriage he was married to Lisa di Giovanni Filippo de Carducci, and in his second to Caterina di Mariotto Rucellia, both of whom died in childbirth. The third marriage took place in 1476 with Lucrezia del Cacio. The Gherardini family was ancient, aristocratic, but impoverished and lost its influence in Florence. It was well-to-do and benefited from Chianti farms that produced olive oil, wine, wheat and livestock.

Lisa Gherardini was the eldest child and was born on June 15, 1479 on the Via Maggio. She was named after her paternal grandmother. In addition to her, the family had three sisters and three brothers.

The family, living in Florence, moved several times and,finally settled next door to Piero da Vinci, Leonardo's father.

Lisa's marriage

March 5, 1495, when the girl was 15 years old, Lisa married Francesco di Bartolomeo del Giocondo.

She became his third wife. Her dowry was modest and consisted of 170 florins and the San Silvestro farm, which was located near the country house of the Giocondo family. One might think that the groom did not pursue we alth, but simply fell in love with a modest girl from a family that did not have a significant fortune. In addition, he was much older than his young wife - at the time of marriage he was 30 years old.

What did the Giocondo family do?

They were silk and clothing merchants. In addition, Francesco del Giocondo owned farms, which were located in Castellina in Chianti and San Donato in Poggio, next to two farms that later became the property of Michelangelo Buonarroti.

Francesco began to climb higher up the social ladder and in 1512 was elected to the Signoria of Florence.

He probably had connections with the political and commercial interests of the powerful Medici family, because when the Florentine government feared their return from exile, Francesco was fined 1000 florins and imprisoned. However, it was released when the power of the Medici was restored.

Family life

Mrs. Lisa del Giocondo lived her life in peace and harmony with her husband. She raised his son from his first wife CamillaRuchelai. Lisa's stepmother, Katerina and Camilla were sisters.

Liza del Giocondo raised her own social status by her marriage, since the family she entered was much more we althy than her own. Eight years later, in 1503, Francesco bought a new house for his family in Via della Stafa, next to his old house.

On the map of the historical center of Florence, the house where Francesco and Lisa lived is marked in red, the houses of Lisa's parents are marked in purple. Initially, they were on the north bank, closer to the Arno River, and then south on the other coast.

The couple had five children: Piero, Camilla, Andrea, Giocondo and Marietta. Subsequently, Camilla and Marietta will be tonsured as nuns. Camilla, who took the name Beatrice during tonsure, died at the age of 18 and was buried in Santa Maria Novella. Marietta took the name Louis and became a respected member of the monastery of Sant'Orsola.

Disease and death

In 1538, Francesco died when the plague came to the city. Before his death, he ordered to return to his beloved wife her dowry, clothes and jewelry: Lisa del Giocondo, as a faithful and exemplary wife, should be provided with everything.

The exact date of Mrs. Lisa's death has not been established. There are suggestions that she died in 1542 at the age of 63. Another date of her death is approximately 1551, when she was 71-72 years old. She is buried in the monastery of Saint Ursula in Florence.

Ordering a portrait

Like most Florentines who lived induring the Italian Renaissance, the family of Francesco Giocondo was passionate about art. Messire Francesco was friendly with Piero da Vinci. His son Leonardo, before returning to his native Florence in 1503, wandered around the Italian cities for a long time.

Through his father, he is given a wish that he paint a portrait of a young Florentine. Here he begins work on a portrait of the Mona Lisa. "Mona" is translated as "lady". Leonardo worked on it for more than one year. Vasari writes that he continued the work for four years, but perhaps even longer. How to find out who painted the Mona Lisa? This can be done by reading the "Biographies" of Giorgio Vasari. This is a universally recognized source, which is trusted by all art historians. Unfortunately, most Russians do not have the opportunity to visit the Louvre, where the world-famous portrait is located. If you look at the original, then all questions about how to find out who painted the "Mona Lisa" will disappear by themselves.

Brilliant work

What, in fact, is its magical effect and incomparable popularity? The picture seems to be extremely simple. She surprises with the absence of bright colors, luxurious clothes, as well as the low-key look of the model herself. All the viewer's attention is focused on the intent, captivating gaze of a young woman, which is the intrigue and main attraction of this image.

The more we look at Lisa, the more there is a desire to penetrate into the depths of her consciousness. But it's extremelydifficult task. The model sets a precise line that the viewer cannot overcome. This is one of the main mysteries of the image. A smile and a look, that is, a face, is the main thing in a portrait. The position of the body, hands, landscape and much more are details that are subordinate to the face. This is the magical mathematical skill of Leonardo: the model is with us in a certain relationship. It attracts and at the same time closes from the viewer. This is one of the wonders of this portrait.

Liza del Giocondo: interesting facts

• La Giocondo's surname translates as "cheerful" or "joyful".
• The painting cannot be called a canvas because it is painted on a wooden board made from poplar.
• We see the figure and the landscape from different points of view. Model is straight, background is on top.
• There is no single point of view about the landscape. Someone thinks that this is Tuscany, the valley of the Arno River; someone is convinced that this is the northern, mysterious Milanese landscape.
• The color of the picture has changed over the centuries. Now it is uniform, brownish. The varnish, yellowed over time, interacting with the blue pigment, changed the color of the landscape.
• Returning to work on the portrait many times, the artist moved further and further away from the real model. The creator put all his ideas about the world into a generalized image. Before us is a symbolic representation of a person in harmony with his mental and spiritual properties.
• The portrait, like all works by Leonardo, is not signed.
• The picture does not have an exact value. All attempts to evaluate it did not lead to a single result.
• BIn 1911, the work was stolen. The police did not find the painting or the thief. But in 1914, he voluntarily returned the piece.