Theories have been shared about the woman in the iconic painting (Image: Getty)
The smiling woman in Leonardo Da Vinci’s Mona Lisa painting may have been struggling with post-pregnancy weight gain, according to an obesity expert. Dr Michael Yafi, a paediatric endocrinologist at the University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, USA, said many theories had been raised about the depicted woman’s health.
He said: “Lisa Gherardini, the woman with the enigmatic smile in Leonardo da Vinci’s iconic painting, is shown with excessive body fat. It’s been speculated that she had lipid metabolism disorder, meaning she couldn’t break down fat properly, but a simpler explanation is that she had put on weight in pregnancy. After all, she’d had four children by this time.”
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The painting’s subject is believed to be an Italian noblewoman named Lisa del Giocondo, who was the wife a wealthy silk and cloth merchant. Her husband is thought to have commissioned the portrait to celebrate the birth of their fourth child.
Speaking at the European Congress on Obesity in Istanbul, Dr Yafi said many famous historical artworks depicted overweight and obesity as a sign of prosperity, weight high social status and physical strength.
He explained: “Corpulence was long a sign of prosperity, wealth, high social status and physical strength. Men with obesity were portrayed as heroes, leaders, royals and nobles and women with excess body fat were symbols of beauty, fertility and prosperity.”
Artists such as Rubens and Renoir were inspired by women with excess body fat. And one of the earliest examples is the Venus of Willendorf, a stone figurine believed to be 24,000 to 32,000 years old. It shows a woman with excess body fat and hips, breasts and other reproductive features have been exaggerated in size.
Dr Yafi said: “Obesity was a symbol of power, too. We know from research from Turkey that 29 of the 36 Ottoman emperors who lived between 1258 and 1926 were depicted as having abdominal obesity or reported to have obesity.”
The boom in weight loss medication could influence future artwork, Dr Yafi said (Image: Getty)
However, the depiction of obesity changed in the second half of the last century, when rich diets and saturated fat were linked to metabolic and cardiovascular disease.
“This led to images of thin, often unrealistically thin, men and women being glorified and obesity being stigmatised,” Dr Yafi said. “Suddenly, thin people became beautiful and the women who inspired artists for centuries were no longer considered attractive.”
The expert predicted that today’s trend for weight loss — including recent worrying images of emaciated celebrities — could soon further change the face of artwork.
He added: “I think that as more people use these drugs, GLP-1 face will be depicted in art.
“The face can develop an aged or tired look due to rapid fat loss in the cheeks, temples, and under-eye areas. I am sure that if Picasso had been alive today, he would have painted it.”
This story originally appeared on Express.co.uk
