Da Vinci Mode

Art

As a fashion designer, Gary Bailey reckoned God was in the details. But it was one particular detail he really worshipped: the image of Jesus at the Last Supper, as encapsulated in the Da Vinci painting. So Bailey, a New York resident who moved to Philadelphia, where he became a powerful social activist, collected replicas and reimaginings of this dominant cultural trope throughout his life. As his friend Jennifer Bates puts it, he believed "One's good, 50's better."

Since Bailey's death in April of 2000, his collection of hundreds of Last Suppers have been in the custody of Ronda Goldfein, director of the AIDS Law Project, with which Bailey was involved. But now Bates, owner of GERM Books and Gallery, is helping Goldfein fulfill Bailey's wish—that all of his collection be hung in one place where the public can see it. So paint-by-numbers versions nestle alongside a lenticular clock (pictured), featuring two images of the Last Supper among a rotating four. The span of mediums—including painted wood panels and carved versions—both determines and explains their varying quality, says Bates. "I think these pieces are all trying to be faithful to the original; but in the execution, they all end up being different." And she believes that the repetition of the monotheic image interrogates its impact: "Do you get desensitized to it? Does it change what it means?"

Bates hopes that, 'round the holiday season, the draw of such provocative art will translate into profits for an unequivocally good cause: A portion of the works' sale will be donated to the AIDS Law Project. --Juliet Fletcher

"The Passion of the Bailey: The Last Supper in Every Conceivable Medium," runs Dec. 3-26, opening reception Dec. 3, 5-7 p.m., GERM Books and Gallery, 308 E. Girard Ave., 215-423-5002.