Iconography

Not really, not really about iconography, given that I'm not really even sure what that term means. But definitely about imagery.

Some Christians are outraged about a scene in the Paris 2024 Olympics opening ceremony that they believe is a corrupt interpretation of The Last Supper. In truth it was a depiction of a Greek Bacchanal, an homage to the Greek origins of the Olympics. But the table scene was very reminiscent of DaVinci's The Last Supper, and in truth, that was where my own thoughts first leapt as the scene opened. But quickly I could see that it wasn't really Christ and the Apostles. Outraged Christians on FB are being calmed and reassured (hopefully) by those in the know, but the whole thing has me thinking about imagery and how it's used as propaganda.

Most people wouldn't immediately consider the imagery the Catholic church uses to be propaganda. They would perhaps say the images are meant to inspire, and to educate, and/or to express the artist's passion for Christ et al.  But for many, these images become the literal truth.  The Catholic church made Jesus and his Apostles and his associates European, rather than Eastern Mediterranean, Arabic or Jewish, as of course they had to have been.  DaVinci's Last Supper is taken as literal history. This is what people believe was the exact actual setting; a long skinny table with 13 men all sitting on just one side. More likely it was a bunch of little tables pushed together and the folks (men and women) gathered 'round. Michelangelo's David is a tall muscle-builder with classic Roman facial features. More likely he was a short brownish thick-haired kid. But people grow up with these images in their bibles and churches, so it must be true.

This is exactly how propaganda works