Jacopo Tintoretto, The Last Supper

Circa 1570
Oil on canvas
Church of San Polo, Venice, Italy

Tintoretto departs from the tradition of modeling Jesus' distribution of the bread on medieval communion liturgy. Instead, the Eucharistic import of this event is carried by the Apostles in the foreground who share their food with a poor man and his child, who lie stretched on the floor much like the sick people whom Jesus cures in other paintings.

The idea of communion is made visual by the central circle of figures that extends from Jesus' outstretched left hand to the four disciples ranged on his left, and thence along the arm of the fourth disciple to the one who is receiving from Jesus' other hand.

Outside this circle on the far left, Judas turns his back and prepares to take his bag and go. He is the only one whose feet are not bare.

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Photographed at the church by Richard Stracke, shared under Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike license.