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| The Bust of a Man (1510) |
Amazingly, a big proportion of these drawings survived after Leonardo passed away in France in 1519. They were gathered together and by the late seventeenth century they were in the possession of King Charles II of England, Wales, Scotland and Ireland. They have remained in the hands of the British royal family ever since - mostly hidden from public view.
However, to mark the 500th anniversary of Leonardo's death, the keepers of The Royal Collection agreed to release some 140 of Leonardo's drawings in a nationwide exhibition titled "Leonardo: A Life in Drawing". One of the twelve venues selected was Sheffield.
Yesterday, I visited The Millennium Galleries and closely observed a handful of examples of the great man's sketching and scribbling.
He had his fingers in so many pies: science, invention, physiology, sculpture, botany, poetry, map-making, astronomy and legend - to name but a few but the obsession of his lifetime was drawing. It underpinned everything and revealed his genius.
Ten years ago I visited Leonardo's childhood home in Tuscany. He was born and raised in a peaceful hamlet called Anchiano - a mile from a more substantial little town called Vinci. I imagine that on countless occasions he walked the very same ancient path that I walked that late honey-warm afternoon - through vineyards, by elegant cypress trees, never suspecting that he was remarkable or that he would be so revered centuries after his death.
Ten years ago I visited Leonardo's childhood home in Tuscany. He was born and raised in a peaceful hamlet called Anchiano - a mile from a more substantial little town called Vinci. I imagine that on countless occasions he walked the very same ancient path that I walked that late honey-warm afternoon - through vineyards, by elegant cypress trees, never suspecting that he was remarkable or that he would be so revered centuries after his death.
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| Preparartory sketch of St Philip (Circa 1495) For "The Last Supper" - sorry about the glare |
I have always been impressed by his work. Last month we spent a few days in Florence and visited the Leonarda da Vinci Museum there. It is very small but fascinating, concentrating on his mechanical, scientific and medical drawings and designs. There are also some models on display, constructed from his designs to show how they were intended to work. Worth a visit.
ReplyDeleteoops, sorry about the typo - fat finger syndrome...
DeleteI couldn't spot the typo JayCee. I bet that Leonardo didn't have fat fingers.
DeleteThe drawing is stunningly detailed. It must have been quite exciting to attend the exhibition
ReplyDeleteWell, you're right Kylie. To be so close to the work of a true genius.
DeleteHang on to all of your sketches YP who knows what will happen to them in the future.
ReplyDeleteBriony
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Yeah. Somebody will make a big bonfire!
DeleteThe Bust of a Man doesn't look like a very happy man...he looks like he is about to burst...or had just been busted!
ReplyDeleteHe looks Australian.
DeleteYou are always so flattering...so nice, Yorkie.
DeleteHow do you manage to always have such an agreeable, pleasant demeanor? Your manners are impeccable!
One wonders what he could have done if he lived in present times. One also wonders who among our younger generation will rise to such a level of genius. They are out there, I am sure.
ReplyDeleteThe geniuses of today will have an entirely different character. What about Bill Gates...or Mark Zuckerberg?
DeleteI thought about them, among others, and felt they were underqualified for the label!
DeleteOnly time will tell.
DeleteLast year, someone gave me a Leonardo biography for my birthday, a doorstopper of a book which is still waiting to be read at the bottom of my TBR pile. I am really looking forward to it, but estimate it will take me a year. In Leeds they also have a Leonardo exhibition; maybe my sister and I will take the bus there one day next week if it rains and we can not go walking. The bus ride is about an hour long.
ReplyDeleteThe stormy weather seems to be dying away now...just ready for you and TSS*
Delete*The Secret Sister
How fortunate to be able to see some of the actual sketches!
ReplyDeleteEven better - there was free admission!
DeleteHe was a man of many talents. If he was living in this age what would he have majored in?
ReplyDeleteHe would have majored in being a major.
DeleteOddly for some obscure reason (probably because I was presumably told it as a child) I can't think about Leonardo without thinking of polymath.
ReplyDeletePolly Math? Was she in Bananarama?
DeleteTeeth are required
ReplyDeleteHe does look as though he has left his gnashers soaking in Steradent.
DeleteThey don't call 'em Renaissance Men for nothing! I remember seeing an exhibit of Leonardo's drawings years ago -- it might have been during a trip to Windsor Castle? I'm not sure. Anyway, it IS interesting to see evidence of Leonardo's boundless curiosity, not to mention artistry.
ReplyDeleteI think it's a shame that for a big part of his life, Leonardo was in the employ of the French crown. He was kind of caged instead of being given licence to fly like a bird.
DeleteHe was one of those handful of humans who with their births and their lives, changed everything.
ReplyDeleteYou know it's funny Mer Mer, but Leonardo's anatomical drawings were largely ignored until the end of the nineteenth century.
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