Excerpt from Term Paper:

......Since fresco painting involves pigment mixed with water and then applied to
wet plaster, both must dry together and fuse permanently which is something
Leonardo failed to do because of his penchant for an oil mixture which
allowed him to "attain atmospheric effects and veiled, sensuous surfaces"
with other works like the Mona Lisa (Zani, 215)
Not surprisingly, the magnificence of The Last Supper faded over the
centuries and by the late 20th century, its "clear and vivid colors no
longer vibrated in the light and had faded into neutral tones and had
nearly lost all patterns of ornamentation" (Brown, 93). In 1999, a newly-
restored Last Supper was unveiled after a marathon restoration which sought
to "scrub away centuries of grime and grease as well as nine previous
makeovers." The results were not taken very well by some critics and
observers who thought the essence of the painting had been destroyed;
however, Leonardo's masterpiece is now much closer to its original
condition and will probably remain so for the next hundred years
("Leonardo's New, Brighter Last Supper," Internet)......

Need this essay? If it's not quite what you're looking for there are over 50,000 more to search from, so you can find the term paper or essay that meets your needs.