Greenaway Saves "Last Supper"'s Reputation?

Leonardo da Vinci Seller of Disputed Leonardo Says It's Just a Copy Detour Worthy Experts Say Parchment Drawing May Be the Work of Leonardo The Greatest Temptations Tokyo National Museum Breaks Attendance Records Homoerotic Depictions of Biblical Scenes Spur Controversy The Week That Was (June 27 – July 4, 2008)

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The wall painting in Milan's Church of Santa Maria delle Grazie was brought to life by a combination of projectors, computers, and speakers, and accompanied by the strains of modern opera. Cutting-edge technology was used to to make Leonardo's Christ appear like a three-dimensional hologram with a radiant sun over his head, among other special effects. Greenaway ended the show by casting prison-like bars over the disciples. 

The one-off performance had faced much controversy in the last 18 months, due to concerns that the painting could suffer damage. Permission was finally granted late last month by the national government in Rome. However, Greenaway was allowed to stage the show only for one night and only to a select group of Milanese dignitaries, art experts, and a few of the friary's monks. He was also forced to drop plans to show the apostles' cups overflowing with blood and to project Christ's genitals on the refectory walls.

"If Leonardo was alive now he wouldn't just be interested in filmmaking, he would be handling high-definition cameras and would be right up against the cutting-edge experimenting with holograms," said Greenaway. "This painting belongs to the laptop generation as much as it does to academia, and we want to demonstrate that."

While some experts consider Greenaway's work cultural vandalism and media hype, others say it may have saved the The Last Supper's reputation after The Da Vinci Code, Dan Brown's blockbuster novel. In the book, many of the painting's hidden meanings had been reduced to a plot device.

"It has reconsecreated the painting after Dan Brown deconsecrated it," said Vittorio Sgarbi, a leading art critic and former head of arts for the Milan local government.