COSTA MESA : Up-Close Study of Art Masterpiece

The students in Irini Vallera-Rickerson’s art history class at Orange Coast College are running a little bit late. They don the garbs of Christ’s disciples, arrange fruit, bread and a wine bottle on a long table and move background panels together.

The resulting assemblage looks much like Leonardo da Vinci’s “Last Supper.”

And that is the intent of this effort by students, who said that they preferred studying Da Vinci and Giorgio Vasari, an art critic of that time, to writing a report.

And as far as Vallera-Rickerson was concerned, they will probably learn more from this experience than from just reading about it in a book.

The animated teacher, born in Greece and earning a doctorate degree in architecture from Italy’s Florence University, emphasizes participation to help her students retain what they learn.

“Art history can be so dry. Education is much more important than memorizing dates,” she said. “These students will remember the painting because they did this and none of them is in the theater. These are students of completely different disciplines.”

The project research on the Renaissance period, painting the background, finding costumes by rummaging through the school’s theater department and deciding on their parts took about six weeks of work, according to the students.

“I learned a lot about Da Vinci’s style and that during this era, most of the paintings were done for the church,” said Drew Hatcher, a social ecology student who played Bartholomew. “This (painting) is the apex of that particular era.”

Vallera-Rickerson also allowed other students in her large lecture class to study the food of the Renaissance and create a feast for their final project.

As the start of the presentation nears, the 12 disciples are placed around the table surrounding Jesus, played by Jason Carpenter, 22, who is studying to be a veterinarian. Director Diane Cary, also a student, refers to the painting in a book and instructs each student on a pose.

They are grouped in trios. Hands are raised, heads are turned or tilted and faces freeze into one emotion.

“Look as guilty as you can,” Cary instructs Imke Bomer, who chose the role of Judas Iscariot, the disciple who betrayed Christ.

For the next 15 minutes, the students-turned-actors pose in their roles as other students playing Da Vinci and Vasari comment on the work of art and its significance. “Jesus” looks peaceful, while “Judas” seems stiff and afraid.

Slowly, as they break from their poses but still staying in their roles, the students eat the grapes and bread and drink from the goblets. They pass fruit to one another and then slowly rise and walk off the stage.

“I looked at the picture in the book and said, ‘I want to be the guy in the blue.’ Then I found out that it was Judas,” Bomer said.