Uwe Wollina, Leonard J Hoenig, Lawrence Charles Parish, Samantha E Pierce
{"title":"John the Baptist in Leonardo Da Vinci's Painting - What's in a Smile?","authors":"Uwe Wollina, Leonard J Hoenig, Lawrence Charles Parish, Samantha E Pierce","doi":"10.1016/j.clindermatol.2025.01.002","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>The smile is a complex human facial expression, most commonly associated with joy. We present a detailed view on Leonardo Da Vinci's painting of Saint John the Baptist, between 1516 to 1516, which illustrates a smiling saint, which has evoked multiple explanations and theories. Discussing Da Vinci's concept of painting as science media and the two merely contradictory painting techniques chiaroscuro and sfumato, we attempt to approach this picture. Chiaroscuro is describing the strong contrasts between light and shadow, while sfumato represents another painting technique for softening the transition between colors. In the context of the positioning of John in the space, the closed smile shown in the picture, is possibly an expression of facing the Sacred.</p>","PeriodicalId":10358,"journal":{"name":"Clinics in dermatology","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.3000,"publicationDate":"2025-01-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Clinics in dermatology","FirstCategoryId":"3","ListUrlMain":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.clindermatol.2025.01.002","RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"Q2","JCRName":"DERMATOLOGY","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 0
Abstract
The smile is a complex human facial expression, most commonly associated with joy. We present a detailed view on Leonardo Da Vinci's painting of Saint John the Baptist, between 1516 to 1516, which illustrates a smiling saint, which has evoked multiple explanations and theories. Discussing Da Vinci's concept of painting as science media and the two merely contradictory painting techniques chiaroscuro and sfumato, we attempt to approach this picture. Chiaroscuro is describing the strong contrasts between light and shadow, while sfumato represents another painting technique for softening the transition between colors. In the context of the positioning of John in the space, the closed smile shown in the picture, is possibly an expression of facing the Sacred.
期刊介绍：
Clinics in Dermatology brings you the most practical and comprehensive information on the treatment and care of skin disorders. Each issue features a Guest Editor and is devoted to a single timely topic relating to clinical dermatology.
Clinics in Dermatology provides information that is...
• Clinically oriented -- from evaluation to treatment, Clinics in Dermatology covers what is most relevant to you in your practice.
• Authoritative -- world-renowned experts in the field assure the high-quality and currency of each issue by reporting on their areas of expertise.
• Well-illustrated -- each issue is complete with photos, drawings and diagrams to illustrate points and demonstrate techniques.
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