The earlier Mona Lisa: creating a tactile physical model for transversal sharing and learning during the exhibition

In 2019 the Architecture Models Laboratory from the DiDALabs System at the Dipartimento di Architettura, University of Florence, was called to realise a tactile model of a very special artwork, the “Early Mona Lisa”, a masterpiece attributed to Leonardo da Vinci, but still at the centre of certain debate between technical investigations and art historians’ evaluations. The occasion was exploited for developing more than a simple touchable reproduction, but to create a complete learning desktop presenting a series of 3D printed models. The desktop was aimed to support the understanding of this masterpiece in parallel with the Louvre's Mona Lisa. The adopted solution was developed creating a common shared experience between blind, partially impaired, and people with normal sight. The whole project was brought on starting from an accurate component design, with well-defined learning experiences. When the whole desktop design was finished, the 3D digital modelling was followed by a complete 3D printing process, stepping through a series of tests with blind people, so to refine and enhance the final result. The exhibition took place in Florence, Italy in April-December 2019, with very positive feedback from the visitors.