8th January 1963 - Jackie Kennedy brings the Mona Lisa to the United States
On January 8th 1963, the Mona Lisa exhibition opened at the National Gallery of Art in Washington, US.
Since its arrival to France in the early 16th century, the Italian painting had never left the country, not even during the Second World War, when it was hidden. Only two remarkable times has the Mona Lisa left the Louvre: in 1911 when a former Louvre employee, Vincenzo Peruggia, stole it and took it to Italy; and in December 1962, when it arrived to US shores thanks to Jackie Kennedy.
Packing up the Mona Lisa / Opening event for the exhibition / Queues to see the Mona Lisa exhibition. Getty Images. John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum, Boston.
Jackie Kennedy had been known to promote visual arts since her first year in the White House. She was a good teenage friend of John Walker, director of the National Gallery of Art at the time, and even convinced him to borrow two Cézanne landscapes from there which would be hung in the White House as part of the renovation she did.
So how did Jackie get to take the Mona Lisa out of French hands and bring it to the US? In 1961, during an official presidential visit to Paris, Mrs. Kennedy charmed culture minister André Malraux and persuaded him to loan the Mona Lisa to the US. When it arrived to the country, a major event was held to welcome the painting.
Mona Lisa makes US Debut, 1963.
It is said nearly two million saw the painting during its tour through the National Gallery and then the Met, attracting citizens of all types.
Jackie Kennedy not only brought the Mona Lisa to the US, but she brought the whole concept of art and museums closer to the people.
You can see Mona Lisa’s reinterpretations in:
Isleworth Mona Lisa, 16th Century.
It is still not clear if this is a previous version of the actual Mona Lisa by Da Vinci, or one of the copies from his students and assistants.
Mona Lisa, El Prado Museum - Madrid, 16th Century.
It is considered the oldest replica of the Mona Lisa. Said to be painted simultaneously by a student when Leonardo was painting his own.
Mona Lisa smoking a pipe, by Eugène Bataille (aka Sapeck), 1887.
First satirical version of the Mona Lisa.
L.H.O.O.Q. the objet trouvé ("found object") by Marcel Duchamp, 1919.
A cheap postcard reproduction onto which artist Marcel Duchamp drew a moustache and beard in pencil.
Mona Lucy by Mark Stephens, 1989.
“In 1989, Mark Stephens was commissioned to create a painting commemorating the 67th birthday of PEANUTS comic strip creator Charles M. Schulz.
The painting hangs today at Snoopy’s Gallery and Gift Shop, across the street from The Charles M. Schulz Museum and Research Center in Santa Rosa, California.”
* @monalisareimagined.
Joglonde from Outer Space
by Philippe Caza, 1998.
“Philippe Caza is one of France’s most acclaimed science fiction artists. Aside from his extensive portfolio of work in comic books, he has illustrated the book covers of French editions of some of the genre’s most celebrated authors, including Isaac Asimov, Jack Vance, Tim Powers, and Roger Zelazny.”
* @monalisareimagined.
Partly Shroudy by Heidi Taillefer, 2000.
“The work of Canadian artist Heidi Taillefer is a fusion of surrealism, contemporary realism, classical allegorical painting, and mythology, combined with popular figurative traditions ranging from Victorian romanticism to science fiction.”
* @monalisareimagined.
Damsel in Distress by Stanley Chow, 2013.
“This striking retro depiction was created for Chow’s 2013 “Damsels in Distress” gallery show at Kosmonaut in Manchester, England. The exhibition featured stylized renditions of fairytale characters such as Snow White and Rapunzel, cartoon heroine Olive Oil, and real-life songstress Whitney Houston. With the lively history that the painting has (including its theft in 1911), Mr. Chow felt that Mona Lisa could also be categorized as a damsel in distress.”
* @monalisareimagined.