DIRECTORATE OF SCHOOL EDUCATION, PUDUCHERRY
SIGARATHAI NOKKI 2019-20
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scientific studies and keen observations of nature. Though best known as a painter, we have only a
few dozen paintings that can be attributed to him. His best known works include the “The Last Supper”
and the “Mona Lisa.” “The Last Supper” was commissioned by Ludovico Sforza, the Duke of Milan, in
1495, to grace the back wall of a monastery dining hall. da Vinci worked for three years on the
painting, which shows the moment when Jesus tells the Twelve Apostles that one of them will soon
betray him. Because da Vinci used tempera and oil on dried plaster, instead of the conventional fresco
on plaster, the painting has deteriorated considerably over time. It was further damaged by improper
attempts at restoration.
Modern conservation techniques, however, have allowed the painting to be stabilized. Eight
years later, da Vinci began his best-known painting, the “Mona Lisa,” done in da Vinci’s sfumato
technique, in which subtle gradations, rather than strict borders, infuse paintings with a softer, smoky
aura. It depicts a young woman of uncertain identify, with a slight smile that has captivated viewers for
centuries. Accounts from an early biographer, however, suggest that the subject of the “Mona Lisa” is
Lisa del Giocondo, the wife of a wealthy Florentine silk merchant, a theory that is supported by the
painting’s original name — “La Gioconda.” For da Vinci, the painting remained a work in progress, and
if the painting was commissioned, the commissioner never received it, as it remained in da Vinci’s
possession. Today it can be seen in the Louvre Museum in Paris, where it is protected behind
bulletproof glass and revered as a national treasure
QUESTIONS:
(a) How can we call Da Vinci ‘A Renaissance man’?
(b) What were his best known works?
(c) Why was 'The Last Supper' deteriorated over time?
(d) What is sfumato technique?
ANSWER:
(a) He was an accomplished painter, sculptor, architect, inventor, engineer and draftsman. So
Da Vinci called as the Renaissance.
(b) His best known works are "The Last Super" and the "Mona Lisa".
(c) Da Vinci used tempera and oil on dried plaster, instead of the conventional fresco on
plaster, so the painting has deteriorated considerably over a time.
(d) Sfumato technique means a subtle gradations, rather than strict borders, infuse paintings
with a softer, smoky aura.
4. Read the following passage and answer the questions given below.
The French Revolution
The French Revolution was a pivotal ten-year-long period in European history that ended with
the rise of Napoleon Bonaparte. During this time, the country of France was completely remade, doing
away with absolute monarchy and the feudal system and paving the way for democracy. A bloody
conflict, it was demonstrated to countries around the world how much power is inherent in the will of a
citizenry.
The stage was set for the French Revolution during France’s financial support of the colonies
during the American Revolution, which left France on the verge of bankruptcy. Unrest among the
citizens was fueled by poor harvests, drought, livestock diseases, and rising prices for food. Heavily
taxed without receiving any relief for their troubles, people began to express their frustration by rioting,
looting and going on strike.
In an attempt at financial reform, Louis XVI’s controller general, Charles Alexandre de
Calonne summoned the Estates-General (“les étatsgénéraux”), an assembly representing France’s
clergy, nobility and middle class, and asked delegates from each of the three estates to bring a list of
grievances with them. But it had been nearly two hundred years since the Estates-General had
convened, and 98% of the French population now fell into the middle class, but they could still be
outvoted by the clergy and the nobility. The Third Estate worked to establish a vote that was based on
head count, rather than status, but the nobles were reluctant to give up the privileges they had long
enjoyed. Hostility erupted and talks stalled, until the Third Estate decided to meet alone, taking the title
of the National Assembly.