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Culture July 18, 2019
Mona Lisa never gets a day off. You should be concerned.
How many times have you seen Leonardo Da Vinci’s Mona Lisa? No, really? How many times have you seen her face? Probably too many times to count. Perhaps she’s such a common part of life now that nobody even keeps track.
Let’s talk about her life really quick. Her dad, Leonardo Da Vinci, created her around 1503 in Florence. He moved around a bit and ended up staying with Francois I in France until he died. Francois I then put poor Mona Lisa to work after Da Vinci’s death. For 200 years she worked there. Today, her non-existent overtime check would practically make her a billionaire.
Then the Louvre opened. Mona Lisa switched jobs temporarily, and moved to Napoleon Bonaparte’s room (no judging, okay?). Then she finally took on her position at the Louvre in 1804. That is, until someone kidnapped her one hundred years later, then returned her, then took heragain…
Look, y’all get the point. Mona Lisa probably has had the most hellish customer service experiences known to man.
When Mona Lisa re-located to the Louvre, she was described as the “the most visited, most written about, most sung about, most parodied work of art in the world” in an Independent article. Everything from her posture to her smile has been studied and analyzed. Has anyone cared to ask her if she needs a day off? Perhaps she needs someone else to take her place for a while?
Imagine having to work everyday of your life from conception til whenever the world gets tired of you. Da Vinci literally just left Mona Lisa out here to be stared at by strangers for eternity. He didn’t even leave her in his will! And you guys, she’s been doing this for FREE ever since horse-riding was the main mode of transportation. She’s been working since bathing was a luxury and not a necessity.
If this doesn’t send you into blind outrage, then some soul searching is in order. There are too many eager volunteers who would love to help out their dear sister Mona Lisa and receive some of the attention that’s been forced on her for years. This, my friends, is why art is important. There are so many other muses and artists who have been unemployed for years. These are the people who would love a little bit more support, and Mona Lisa just so happens to need a break.
Many of these unemployed muses are much younger too, with modern takes on the hundred-year old styles that we’ve been gawking over incessantly. Remember your classmate that does a couple paintings on the side? The one that occasionally posts one or two of their creations on Insta? Remember your little brother’s best friend that can create a mural out of any dingy building wall?
The great thing about art is that it has an uncanny way of speaking to people. The diversity of experience from artists around the world help create a myriad of inspiration and beauty for the world to see. Surely, we know where I’m going with this.
There are too many different dynamic works of art that reflect the innovative and fresh minds of young and upcoming artists. These artists are in your neighborhoods and on your timelines, broadening the narrative on traditional easels and boxcars or grim subway walls. Times are changing. Diversity is prevalent and is never going away. A diverse world needs diverse perspectives, and it’s necessary to support those who are trying to provide that.
Plus, I know the good sis Mona Lisa is tired of fake smiling at all of you. Just saying.
