That Olympics Skit Dust-Up -- What do We Make of It?

   That dust-up about da Vinci's "The Last Supper" and the skit at the Olympics which offered transsexuals seemingly portraying the apostles in "The Last Supper" -- is it over? Not if you have me to deal with. I'm not ready to drop it. Yes, I know the skit's people have made it clear it was based not on da Vinci's work, but on that of a painter out of the Netherlands, Jan van Bijlert.

   Yes, I said Jan van Bijlert. Now, you haven't heard of him, have you? I looked up a list of the 20 most-famous Dutch painters, and he wasn't on it. I also tried to determine if van Bijlert's "Le Festin des Dieux" is famous in France. I don't know whether we could call it obscure (but, perhaps we could), but neither should we call it well-known. It is on display at the Mussee Magnin, a museum in Dijon that contains about 2,000 works of art collected by Maurice Magnin and his sister Jeanne that was willed to the state in 1938. That  makes Mussee Magnin a national museum, which carries some weight of distinction for the pictures in it. But, were the paintings even on public display until 1938? If they weren't that doesn't speak to them being somewhat famous -- and "Le Festin des Dieux" is not one of the more-acclaimed pictures in the museum. Why is all this significant? Because those who say the skit in the Olympics Opening Ceremony was based on "Le Festin des Dieux," not "The Last Supper" have to deal with the question of why they picked a picture that was not well-known to base their skit on. Yes, they argue that da Vinci's "The Last Supper" is on display in Italy, well removed from the Olympics, while van Bijlert's "Le Festin des Dieux" is housed in Dijon, France, less than 200 miles from Paris. So, the assertion is that the skit in the opening ceremonies had to be inspired by "Le Festin des Dieux," not "The Last Supper." I'm not convinced. That's your proof that that there is no connection. Very weak.

   So, if you believe "The Last Supper" had nothing to do with the Olympic's skit, I say, not so fast. There are a few details yet to deal with. Details, details -- sometimes they get in the way. Will learning of them change your opinion? Do they convince me, or do I come away, saying, You're right, the skit wasn't based on the Last Supper? Listen up and we shall see.

   Water is thrown on the "The Last Supper" connection by pointing out that there is an almost-naked person in the foreground of the skit (an actor portraying the Greek god Bacchus). Now, where in "The Last Supper" is such a representation? Clearly, there is not, so they argue that the skit had to be based on "Le Festin des Dieux" (in English, that's "The Feast of the Gods," in case you've read news stories referring to it as that) because "Le Festin" does have Bacchus in the foreground. But, what about the skit? Yes, there is Bacchus in the foreground in some scenes, but not in the one in question. 

   "Le Festin des Dieux" and "The Last Supper" have much in common. Both have the characters situated behind a long table. None of the characters are in front of the table, but all behind it. Both have a person at the middle of the table who faces the audience. That person has a halo or aureole around his head in both pictures. In both pictures, he is flanked by other characters. The thought might come up: did one of the two paintings imitate the other? If so, which one is guilty? Weren't the Greek gods and their mythology around long before Christ and his apostles? Doesn't that settle it? No, it doesn't. "The Last Supper" was painted about 1495-98. And "Le Festin"? It was not created until 1635-1640. If one is copying the other, it had to be"Le Festin" copying "The Last Supper."

   One thing that is in one of the skit pictures that is not in "The Last Supper" is a red cross just above the lady at the center of the table (lesbian activist Barbara Butch). I tried to look that picture up again, but for awhile could not find it. Still, I knew I had seen it. Then, as I was closing all the windows on my computer as I had finished this study, I spotted it. It is in an picture from The Associated Press. That a red cross was in one of the pictures of the skit grants even more credence to the notion that the skit was influenced by "The Last Supper." A cross? Now, why would that be thrown in? I would question whether a cross is present in ancient mythology, but I know it is front and center in Christianity.

   As you might guess, this controversy attracted the attention of Snopes, which noted the denials from skit and Olympics officials and left it at that. Snopes didn't say the accusation that the skit was based on "The Last Supper is wrong," but it left you with that impression.

   Me? I believe I have studied it well -- even better than Snopes did. And, yes, I lean towards believing the skit was influenced by da Vinci's famous work.


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