Paris opening ceremony symbols were NOT parodying Christianity - as usual it was about the aim for a peaceful and better world - to celebrate Olympian values of excellence, respect and friendship
- and the tradition and history of the host country
The opening ceremony is expected to be full of symbols related to the rich history and accomplishments of the host nation. It is also expected to be full of symbols related to ancient Greek mythology and Christian tradition have used many of those symbols later to mean other things. So accidental similarities are INEVITABLE.
It’s like looking for patterns in clouds. It’s not what the organizer intended.
For a recent earlier example, there was a lot of fuse about the mechanical bull at the 2022 Commonwealth Games in the UK. This bull represented the industrial revolution and taming it. Here is how the organizers explained it:
. Raging Bull from Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games Opening Ceremony now on public display
It's about release from oppression. However, the opening ceremony was misinterpreted by some as a satanic ritual.
. False: Satanic rituals were performed at the opening ceremony of the 2022 Commonwealth Games.
The fuss soon died down. It was meant as just a temporary sculpture for the games. But many people liked it and wanted to keep it, and it ended up as a permanent feature in Birmingham New Street station
. Ozzy the bull roars back into Birmingham New Street station
In this case, the “last supper” tableau that all the fuss is about was actually inspired by the ancient Greek Feast of Dionysus
Text on Graphic: Not mockery of “last supper”. Inspired by the Greek feast of Dionysus. Also celebrating Paris as a center of fashion
Thomas Jolly:
“The idea was to do a big pagan party linked to the gods of Olympus.”
“You'll never find in my work any desire to mock or denigrate anyone. I wanted a ceremony that brings people together, that reconciles, but also a ceremony that affirms our Republican values of liberty, equality and fraternity”
As with other Olympics opening ceremonies, to mock Christianity would have been to go against the entire Olympic spirit of celebrating excellence, respect and friendship so it couldn’t be intentional.
Quote from Thomas Jolly from:
. Opening ceremony choreographer denies 'Last Supper' parody at launch of Paris Games
Greek pottery vase: Dinos Painter 'meanad' stamnos
See also Dinos Painter's stamnos, depicting a feast of Dionysos:
[BFM short for Business FM is a nationwide TV and radio french news channel BFM TV - Wikipedia]
I will look at three claims here
They were NOT parodying the last supper - it was a catwalk, a walkway not a table.
Many Christians have taken this as a parody of a famous painting by Leonardo Da Vinci and it’s running in respectable news sources like France24 though none of them are going so far as to say it was intentional
Thomas Jolly, who is gay, designer of the tableau says it was NOTHING TO DO WITH THE LAST SUPPER, saying “My wish isn’t to be subversive, nor to mock or to shock. Most of all, I wanted to send a message of love, a message of inclusion and not at all to divide.”that they used the symbol of the pale rider of end times stories - no it was Joan of Arc, French historical figure that rode to battle with white armour on a white horse, and also the Olympian spirit
That they worshipped a golden calf - no there was just a bronze statue of a bull and deer in the background that they had because it was always there, they boarded over the Trocadero fountains for the opening ceremony, but didn’t cover up the sculptures, built in 1930.
Most are just tweets. The last supper story is running in more respectable sources like France24 but they don't say it is deliberate.
DRAG FASHION SHOW WAS INSPIRED BY THE GREEK FEAST OF DIONYSUS AND DESIGNERS HAD NO INTENTION TO PORTRAY ANYTHING IN CHRISTIANITY
As we saw the original designer Thomas Jolly says it was not intentionally anything to do with the last supper painting by da Vinci.
I was also pretty sure already that it is just an accidental slight resemblance. It doesn’t look very similar to me.
If he meant it deliberately he would surely have had 12 people instead of at least 17, grouped them more like in the painting and generally made it look more similar.
The headdress doesn't much resemble a halo either, and the original da Vinci painting doesn't have a halo.
The da Vinci painting also naturally is in Italy not in France. Olympic Ceremonies celebrate the art and culture of the host nation.
Finally to mock Christianity would go against the entire Olympic spirit of celebrating excellence, respect and friendship so it couldn’t be intentional. i
The response to the opening ceremony in France is largely favorable
QUOTE STARTS
Neutral observers from overseas focused on the reliance on non-French stars, the punishing rain and the odd sight of singer Philippe Katerine’s turn as Dionysus in blue body paint. But Saturday’s front pages in France preferred to dwell on the spectacle.
“En Trombes” (with a bang) was splashed on Libération, above a picture of the Tricolore fireworks which lit up Austerlitz Bridge. Le Parisien highlighted the Eiffel Tower and the word “Époustouflant” (breathtaking), while Le Figaro used a different image of the tower saluting “le ferveur et l’émotion” (fervour and emotion).
Le Monde’s review was positive, saying artistic director Thomas Jolly “succeeded in his challenge of presenting an immersive show in a capital transformed into a gigantic stage”.
“Under the flood, the capital and its river were the scene on Friday of a dreamlike spectacle taking on the story of a mixed, inclusive French history without fear of controversy…
“It was a parade like travelling theatre troupes’ centuries ago, when they crossed the city with sets and costumes, to get a crowd excited before the performance.
…
Le Figaro was more off-message, calling the show “great but some of it was just too much”. It expressed distaste for the recreation of the painting of The Last Supper via a fashion show saying viewers “could have been spared” it.
. Paris 2024 opening ceremony leaves English viewers cold... but French declare it ‘magnifique’
1. The "last supper" was actually a walkway not a table - a catwalk celebrating Paris as a fashion center. It started with nobody walking on the catwalk.
Here is another shot of it with the models walking up and down it.
QUOTE STARTS
Paris made it clear it takes its position as a fashion capital of the world seriously during the opening ceremony, converting the Debilly Footbridge into a catwalk for an evening fashion show.
The show featured French celebrities dressed by up-and-coming French designers, including designs by Alphonse Maitrepierre, C-R-E-O-L-E, and Gilles Asquin.
Models stomped the runway amid the rain to a musical set by Barbara Butch, a French DJ and LGBTQ activist.
. olympics-2024-paris-opening-ceremony
Many of the stories just treat it as a catwalk.
This is an example to show how fashion show catwalks are often raised like that.
See:
However some Christians have seen this as being a parody of Leonardo da Vinci’s last supper
.Drag Queen ‘Last Supper’ During Olympics Opening Ceremony Sparks Outrage From Christians
I don’t know if it was intentional.
This is the painting they think it parodie
d
. The Last Supper (Leonardo) - Wikipedia
They didn’t strike a pose to resemble the pose of the disciples in the painting and it wasn’t that similar.
There were at least 17 people, a few more to the right maybe 20 total, and not in four groups of thre
Text on graphic: Accidental resemblance. Da Vinci “last supper” in Italy not France
17 not 12 people
- headdress not much like halo
- da Vince painting doesn’t have halo
- not in four groups of people.Thomas Jolly: “Most of all, I wanted to send a message of love, a message of inclusion and not at all to divide.”
Thomas Jolly: “The idea was to do a big pagan party linked to the gods of Olympus.”
“You'll never find in my work any desire to mock or denigrate anyone. I wanted a ceremony that brings people together, that reconciles, but also a ceremony that affirms our Republican values of liberty, equality and fraternity”
Screenshot from the BBC Olympics coverage
. Olympics - Opening Ceremony at about 4 : 53 : 56
And Jesus doesn’t have a halo in the original and the headdress doesn’t resemble a halo.
My guess is it was accidental because if it was intentional surely they would have made it more similar to the original.
It doesn’t look like intentional depictions of famous paintings.
. Getty Artworks Re-created with Household Items by Geniuses the World Over
Others have mentioned that Simpsons did an intentional parody of the last supper, with two in each group instead of 3
.
And the original designer of the tableaux says it is NOT intentional. Thomas Jolly is gay and it WAS intended to celebrate many different forms of loving. But it was NOT intended to mock or shock anyone.
A practically naked singer painted blue made thinly veiled references to his body parts. Blonde-bearded drag queen Piche crawled on all fours to the thumping beat of “Freed From Desire” by singer-songwriter Gala, who has long been a potent voice against homophobia. There were the beginnings of a menage à trois — the door was slammed on the camera before things got really steamy — and the tail end of an intimate embrace between two men who danced away, hugging and holding hands.
“In France, we have the right to love each other, as we want and with who we want. In France, we have the right to believe or to not believe. In France, we have a lot of rights. Voila,” said the audacious show’s artistic director, Thomas Jolly.
Jolly, who is gay, says being bullied as a child for supposedly being effeminate drove home early on how unjust discrimination is.
…
DJ and producer Barbara Butch, an LGBTQ+ icon who calls herself a “love activist,” wore a silver headdress that looked like a halo as she got a party going on a footbridge across the Seine, above parading athletes — including those from countries that criminalize LGBTQ+ people. Drag artists, dancers and others flanked Butch on both sides.
The tableau brought to mind Leonardo da Vinci’s “Last Supper,” which depicts the moment when Jesus Christ declared that an apostle would betray him.
Jolly says that wasn’t his intention. He saw the moment as a celebration of diversity, and the table on which Butch spun her tunes as a tribute to feasting and French gastronomy.
“My wish isn’t to be subversive, nor to mock or to shock,” Jolly said. “Most of all, I wanted to send a message of love, a message of inclusion and not at all to divide.
. Paris' Olympics opening was wacky and wonderful — and upset bishops. Here's why
The idea was to highlight Paris as a center of fashion. Also in the spirit of the international Drag Race franchise it featured drag queens - men dressed in women’s clothing showing off high fashion by Paris fashion designers.
They began as spectators and then later they joined the other models on the catwalk.
Also others point out that the 2000 Olympics in Sidney Australia had a drag queens section
QUOTE STARTS
At the closing ceremony of the Sydney 2000 Olympics, 46 divas performed a tribute to The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert. The drag queens wore original gowns and costumes from the cult 1994 queer film.
“Sydney 2000 closing ceremony had drag queens driving heels in a tribute to Priscilla,” one user posted on social media, with footage of the moment. It shows the bus from the film, topped with a giant steel stiletto heel, being driven around the Olympic stadium like a parade float.
Alongside it were several stiletto-heel tricycle floats which drag queens danced around.
…
The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert is a nineties musical drama from Stephan Elliott that has gone on to be a cult classic. The film chronicles two drag queens, played by Hugo Weaving and Guy Pearce, and a trans woman (Terence Stamp) – in performances seen as quite brave and groundbreaking at the time – travelling across the Australian desert in a tour bus.On their journey across the country to perform their cabaret show, they come across all sorts of interesting characters.
. The Sydney 2000 Olympics also featured drag queens – where was the outrage then?
More details here, the Greek gods costumes of the drag queens were designed by Louis Vuitton, a French luxury fashion house.
The organizers thought that the presence of Dionysus at the table made it pretty clear that it was about the Greeks not about Christians.
There is a cultural back-and-forth raging in America about the opening ceremony of the Paris Olympics — specifically, the sequence where French drag queens and other queer artists dressed as Greek gods in Louis Vuitton costumes to celebrate the history of French art and fashion.
This reaction has been rather confusing to the French event organizers, who said they never intended The Last Supper as a reference at all.
“It was pretty clear, [it was] Dionysus who arrives at the table,” Paris Olympics artistic director Thomas Jolly said in a French-language interview. “Why is he there? Because Dionysus is the Greek god of festivities and wine, and is the father of Sequana, the goddess of the Seine river.”
The event is, after all, called the Olympics, so an homage to the gods of its namesake Mount Olympus is only appropriate.
MISTAKEN CLAIM THAT THOMAS JOLLY INTENDED A PARALLEL WITH THE DA VINCI PAINTING IN “THE WRAP”
The claim that Thomas Jolly was inspired by da Vinci's painting goes back to a single source "TheWrap". Snopes weren't able to find anyone else reporting this. Olympic Opening Ceremony Featured da Vinci's 'Last Supper'?
Seems likely that either "TheWrap" got it wrong or the person they contacted got it wrong. It is just a private communication between the Paris 2024 producers. They didn't contact Thomas Jolly himself. This is what TheWrap said.
QUOTE STARTS
Others, including a statement from Paris 2024 producers obtained by TheWrap Sunday, said that it was in fact inspired by Da Vinci’s famous painting — a skewing of the religious imagery that has been slammed by the Christian right as a mockery of Jesus Christ.
“For the ‘Festivities’ segment, Thomas Jolly took inspiration from Leonardo da Vinci’s famous painting to create the setting,” producers said in the statement. “Clearly, there was never an intention to show disrespect towards any religious group or belief … [Jolly] is not the first artist to make a reference to what is a world-famous work of art. From Andy Warhol to ‘The Simpsons,’ many have done it before him.”
As we saw, Thomas Jolly says it was NOT inspired by the da Vinci painting. It also wouldn't be normal to do a section inspired by a painting from another country, in this case the painting is in Italy and da Vinci lived in Italy so it makes no sense that the Paris Olympics would use it as inspiration.
Although with hindsight one can see why people would jump to a conclusion that it is inspired by perhaps the most famous painting showing many guests all on one side of a table, the layout doesn't even closely resemble the painting. In the original by da Vinci Jesus doesn't have a halo.
Also as we saw, the original by da Vinci has four groups of 3 disciples and the parodies of it generally copy that even if they have different numbers of guests, the Simpsons parody has four groups of 2. The Olympics tableau has at least 17 guests and not grouped in four groups.
As reported by Snopes referring to a now deleted Instagram post . Olympic Opening Ceremony Featured da Vinci's 'Last Supper'?, Barbara Butch, the large lady in the center of the tableau with the headdress said she represented Apollo the sun god, and referred to this painting.
. Jan Hermansz. van Bijlert | Le Festin des Dieux (The Feast of the Gods ) | Artsy
This as you see has a similar arrangement of many guests all on one side of a table which is a common convention for depicting feasts in paintings at the time.
SILVER HORSE REPRESENTED A LEGEND ABOUT JOAN OF ARC ON A WHITE HORSE AND THE SPIRIT OF OLYMPICS IN A CHAPTER CALLED “SOLIDARITY” INTRODUCED WITH THE WORDS “WE STAND AND CALL FOR PEACE”
2. The white horse was a rider carrying the Olympic flag with silver armour on a silver horse representing the Olympic Spirit. The rider was also representing Joan of Arc who in one of the legends leads into battle with white armour on a white horse. The symbol of a white horse is widely used in many cultures and is usually a symbol of purity, energy, hope and such like qualities.
The Joan of Arch symbolism is from a story where she led an army on a white horse and wearing white armour.
QUOTE Against the advice of most of his counselors and generals, Charles granted her request, and Joan set off to fend off the Siege of Orléans in March of 1429 dressed in white armor and riding a white horse. After sending off a defiant letter to the enemy, Joan led several French assaults against them, driving the Anglo-Burgundians from their bastion and forcing their retreat across the Loire River.
Joan of Arc: Facts, Passion, Death & Sainthood - HISTORY
Painting of it here though without the armour shown as white.
. File:Jeanne d'Arc - Les vies des femmes célèbres.jpg - Wikimedia Commons
Saint George is also often shown on a white horse and there are many other white horses in many cultures going back to pre-history..
. White horses in mythology - Wikipedia
This is what the metal horse looked like on the Seine
Screenshot from the BBC Olympics coverage
. Olympics - Opening Ceremony at about 3:31:24
It was replaced by a real white horse (more accurately a gray horse, true white horses have pink skin) when the rider rode into the stadium
Screenshot from the BBC Olympics coverage
. Olympics - Opening Ceremony at about 3:41:52
This is a true white horse, as you see its skin is pink, so the one they road was technically a gray horse.
File:White-horse-with-pink-skin-dark-eyes-IMG 1282.JPG - Wikimedia Commons
This video is about how they made the metal horse:
NBC news describe it as:
QUOTE A rider on a metal horse is galloping down the Seine, which is meant to represent the "Olympic spirit." The rider is wearing the Olympic flag.
. A rider on metallic horseback rides down the Seine
The NY Times describe it as:
QUOTE A Joan of Arc figure appears riding a mechanical silver horse “galloping” down the Seine. Her armor is by a young French designer named Jeanne Friot, who has a non-binary line of her own, and is another example of the way the styling and costume design of these games was conceived to highlight a new generation of talent.
. Update from Vanessa Friedman
NPR:
QUOTE STARTS
A woman draped in the Olympic flag rode a metal horse through the Seine as dramatic music played, in a scene straight out of a movie.
The horsewoman is Floriane Issert, a Gendarmerie noncommissioned officer with the National Gendarmerie, one of France's two armed forces.
She followed the same path as the athletes, through the river and underneath its many bridges, but cut a unique figure in the darkness of night.
As she made her journey, the screen occasionally showed montages of archival photos and videos from past Olympic Games, first in black and white and then more recently in color, set to upbeat music.
Issert then crossed the Iéna Bridge to the Place du Trocadéro. Accompanied by a colorful stream of flag-bearers from each country, she brought the Olympic flag to the big stage — this time riding a real horse.
To put this in context, the Paris opening ceremony was subdivided into various thematic chapters. The horse was in the solidarity chapter introduced with the words "We Stand and Call for Peace".
QUOTE The ceremony was divided into thematic chapters, including Fraternité (fraternity), Sororité (sorority), Sportive (sportsmanship), Solidarité (solidarity), Solennité (solemnity) and Éternité (eternity). These were used as prompts to underpin each section of the sprawling, epic ceremony.
Peace, inclusion and solidarity
Toward the end of the three hour extravaganza, Paris was plunged into darkness as a singer standing near a burning grand piano floating on a barge delivered a poignant version of John Lennon’s Imagine.
The words “We Stand and Call for Peace” in both English and French appeared on screen. This elicited an enormous cheer from the crowd, and underscored a theme appearing in speeches and theatrical images throughout the ceremony: inclusion, respect, solidarity and the role the Olympics can play in supporting these notions across global borders.
“In our Olympic World we all belong,” claimed the International Olympic Committee chair Thomas Bach in his speech.
The Horsewoman, draped in the Olympic flag, rides along on the River Seine.
A horse carrying a rider wearing the Olympic flag appeared to gallop down the river. Clive Brunskill/Pool Photo via AP
Taking this idea further, as part of Solidarité, an illuminated silver mechanical horse carrying a rider wearing the Olympic flag appeared to gallop down the river. We watched images of Olympic moments over the years that united the world – and at times challenged dominant thinking.
The rider emerged from the river on a dappled grey horse at the Trocadero at the base of the iconic and resplendent Eiffel Tower. A parade of flag bearers from all countries assembled behind the rider as they walked together through the streets of Paris to raise the Olympic flag and sing the Olympic anthem.
It was magnificent and humbling.
“GOLDEN CALF” WAS A BRONZE BULL WITH A DEER SCULPTED BY PAUL JOUVE IN THE 1930S AND A PERMANENT FIXTURE AT THE HEAD OF THE TROCADERO FOUNTAINS WHICH WERE BOARDED OVER FOR THE CEREMONY
3. The “golden calf” is a bronze bull with a deer not a golden calf and it was sculpted by Paul Jouve in the 1930s.
It was there already.
TWEET "This sculpture of a bull (not a calf) and a deer by Paul Jouve, made in the 1930s, has always been located there near the Trocadero fountains. The scene for the Olympics opening ceremony was simply built around it."
. Taureau et Daim (Bull and Deer)
They boarded over the fountains temporarily for the opening ceremony to have the view of the Eiffel tower.
You can explore it with google street view here:
QUOTE STARTS
The Jardins du Trocadero were first designed by the engineer Jean-Charles Adolphe Alphand back in the 1800s when Baron Haussmann was redeveloping the city, and yet, these gardens in Paris were redesigned again for the 1937 World Fair, and as you can see from this HD photo, they are in a prominent position with fabulous views of the Eiffel Tower, which is one of the reasons they have become such a popular tourist attraction, especially at dusk when people are waiting for the illuminations and when this image was taken.
This is a photo we took of the bronze statue called the Taureau et Daim, which translates to Bull and Deer and positioned within a square basin with its own water feature that is part of the Jardins du Trocadero, this was sculpted by Paul Jouve when the gardens and the Trocadero fountains were redesigned, and there is another animal statue situated in another basin opposite at the same elevation.
OPENING CEREMONIES OF OLYMPIC GAMES ARE ALWAYS ABOUT THE HISTORY AND TRADITIONS OF THE HOST COUNTRY AND TO CELEBRATE THE OLYMPIC SPIRIT OF THE GAMES TO COME - NEVER DIVISIVE OR MOCKING - ALWAYS ABOUT OLYMPISM VALUES OF EXCELLENCE, FRIENDSHIP AND RESPECT
The opening ceremonies are ALWAYS about
1. the history and traditions of the host country and celebrating what is good, what they are proud of
2. also to celebrate the Olympic spirit of the games to come
They are NEVER divisive or mocking of other traditions .
The central focus is ALWAYS on sport and on the three values of olympism of excellence, respect and friendship.
These are the Olympic values that the ceremony and the games are really about:
The three values of olympism are excellence, respect and friendship. They constitute the foundation on which the olympic movement builds its activities to promote sport, culture and education with a view to building a better world.
The original values of Olympism as expressed in the Olympic Charter were to “encourage effort”, “preserve human dignity” and “develop harmony”.
Over time, they have evolved and are now expressed in more contemporary terms as:
Striving for excellence and encouraging people to be the best they can be.
Demonstrating respect in many different manners: respect towards yourself, the rules, your opponents, the environment, the public, etc.
Celebrating friendship, which is quite unique to the Olympic Games – an event that brings people together every few years.
This is the idea of setting your rivalries aside. There is more that unites us than divides us.
Olympism is a philosophy of life, exalting and combining in a balanced whole the qualities of body, will and mind. Blending sport with culture and education, Olympism seeks to create a way of life based on the joy found in effort, the educational value of good example and respect for universal fundamental ethical principles.
The goal of the Olympic Movement is to contribute to building a peaceful and better world by educating youth through sport practiced without discrimination of any kind and in the Olympic spirit, which requires mutual understanding with a spirit of friendship, solidarity and fair play.
https://olympics.com/ioc/olympic-values
And short summary:
The goal of the Olympic Movement is to contribute to building a peaceful and better world by educating youth through sport practised in accordance with Olympism and its values. . olympic-movement
This time they also had the Refugee Olympic team which first appeared in 2008. Athletes who for whatever reason are not able to compete for their home country which they had to leave as refugees and can’t go back to.
Screenshot from the BBC Olympics coverage
. Olympics - Opening Ceremony at about 55 : 21 in.
See:
. What Is the Refugee Olympic Team at the 2024 Paris Olympic Games?
UN High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi was awarded the Olympic Laurel for his work in setting up the Refugee Olympic team.
. UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency (@Refugees) on X
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