Those who cannot see can now ‘read’ the Last Supper with their hands. A bas relief version of Leonardo da Vinci’s masterpiece was made so that the visually impaired can also explore and admire the famed fresco. Sponsored by the Fondazione CittàItalia in Milan, the bas relief was recently installed in the refectory of the Santa Maria delle Grazie church, in the same room as the original. Funds for the bas relief were raised through a charity art auction, held last September at Milan’s Triennale Museum.
Sculptor Marco Marchesini made the resin bas relief version of da Vinci’s Last Supper, which measures one meter by 10x50cm. The nine-month project to produce the hands-on version included testing by the blind and visually impaired to ensure that the work would be legible. Because there are aspects of the famed fresco that can’t be understood via touch alone, a special audio guide for the visually impaired was commissioned.
For more information, contact the Fondazione CittaItalia, at 06/36006206 or the Soprintendenza ai Beni Architettonici di Milano at 02/86313211.
