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Title: Leonardo: The Artist and the Man by Serge Bramly, Sian Reynolds ISBN: 0-14-023175-7 Publisher: Penguin USA (Paper) Pub. Date: March, 1995 Format: Paperback Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $24.00 |
Average Customer Rating: 4.5 (8 reviews)
Rating: 4
Summary: Leonardo Never Ceases to Amaze Me
Comment: What an amazing historical figure. Bramly's book gives a comprehensive review of Da Vinci's formative years as an artist, as well as great insight into the artist communities of the time. He also touches upon the artists interest in and contributions to the sciences. A valuable read for an art student, as well as those interested in the development of Da Vinci's techniques. One thing I was hoping to read more about which was lacking in this book, however, was Da Vinci's involvement in the Sons of Priory and/or Knights Templar.
Rating: 5
Summary: The Divine Da Vinci
Comment: Serge Bramly is a man of his word. The subtitle of this book is "The Artist And The Man," and that is what we get, in a very evenhanded account. There are many fascinating anecdotes and tidbits concerning both the work and the personality of Leonardo. My favorite story concerned the painting of "The Last Supper." Mr. Brambly explains that Leonardo liked to base his figures on real people. He strolled the streets of Milan and sketched many faces in order to come up with the models for Christ's disciples. It was smooth sailing until he tried to find someone "evil" looking enough to base Judas on. Apparently Leonardo dragged his feet on completing the fresco for a year while he searched for "his Judas." The prior of the convent who was keeping tabs on the notoriously slow-working Leonardo finally complained to the Duke of Milan regarding the delay. Called in front of the Duke to explain himself, Leonardo had this to say: "...I have been going every day to the Borghetto, where Your Excellency knows that all the ruffians of the city live. But I have not yet been able to discover a villain's face corresponding to what I have in mind. Once I find that face, I will finish the painting in a day. But if my research remains fruitless, I shall take the features of the prior who came to complain about me to Your Excellency and who would fit the requirements perfectly. But I have been hesitating a long time whether to make him a figure of ridicule in his own convent." In this quote, we get an idea of both Leonardo's working method and his sense of humor. (The Duke, by the way, was delighted by this reply and took Leonardo's side in the matter.) It is impossible to convey the richness of this book in a short review, but Mr. Bramly manages to convey the richness of his subject in what, at 400 pages, is a relatively brief biography. The author discusses Leonardo's famous "mirror writing" and states that it was not an attempt to conceal what he was writing, as Leonardo's notebooks were workbooks rather than diaries. Mr. Brambly says that left-handed people commonly can write from right to left. (I am not an expert and cannot judge this assertion.). The author also discusses Leonardo's homosexuality, his proposed inventions, his forays into architecture and civil engineering, his insatiable curiosity (he performed over two dozen dissections to teach himself anatomy, as well as learning Latin and mathematics in middle-age), and even his diet (Leonardo came to believe in the sanctity of all life, not just human life, and became a vegetarian). Mr. Bramly is not blind to his subject's faults: Leonardo was to some extent lazy (he hated to get up in the morning...something many of us can identify with!); he started many projects but completed very few (he was more interested in the conception than in the completion, plus his mind tended to wander from topic to topic); and he seemed to be pretty much disconnected from "real life" and other people and lost in his dreams and work. A bonus of the book is that Mr. Bramly gives wonderful descriptions of some of the famous people whose paths crossed Leonardo's, such as Cesare Borgia and King Francois I of France. I also can't say enough good things about the quality of the translation from French to English done by Sian Reynolds. There is not one clunky sentence in the entire book. The book is also peppered with many interesting reproductions (mostly black-and-white, but a few color), including an alternate, nude, version of "The Mona Lisa!" Many sketches from Leonardo's notebooks are included, as well. I came away from this book knowing a lot more about Leonardo's work and personality. When this work was first published in Great Britain in the early 1990's it was selected as one of the best books of the year by "The Sunday Times." It's not difficult to see why.
Rating: 5
Summary: I wish I could have met him
Comment: It's been a while since I read this book, but I wanted to write the review to spread the word that this is a fascinating biography, well worth reading. If you're a da Vinci expert, I don't know how much this will add to your knowledge, but for a painter and generalist like me, the art criticism, biography, and historical context were perfectly balanced. Da Vinci was more than just a visionary genius; he was a genuinely charming and hilarious guy. If there's anyone from the past I could meet, it would probably be he. And if there's anyone from the past who I wish could see the modern world, again it would be da Vinci, because his intellectual curiosity would have been so vindicated by what modern science has to offer. While da Vinci was too preoccupied with other projects to concentrate on painting for much of his career, he created a small number of paintings so profound that they have never been surpassed. Personally, I prefer his secular portraits to all others -- ah to have looked over his shoulder while he painted the magnificent Ginevra de' Benci or the Cecilia Gallerani (Lady with the Ermine)! Unfortunately, and I seriously doubt this is due to a defect in research, there isn't that much information available about da Vinci's emotional life, so the author makes careful but limited extrapolations based on fact. I love biography because it's the next best thing to meeting fascinating people, and it doesn't get much better than this.
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Title: Holy Blood, Holy Grail by Michael Baigent, Richard Leigh, Henry Lincoln ISBN: 0440136482 Publisher: Dell Pub. Date: 15 January, 1983 List Price(USD): $7.99 |
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Title: The Notebooks of Leonardo Da Vinci (Volume 1) by Leonardo Da Vinci ISBN: 0486225720 Publisher: Dover Pubns Pub. Date: 01 June, 1970 List Price(USD): $19.95 |
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Title: The Templar Revelation: Secret Guardians of the True Identity of Christ by Lynn Picknett, Clive Prince ISBN: 0684848910 Publisher: Touchstone Books Pub. Date: 12 November, 1998 List Price(USD): $15.00 |
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Title: Leonardo Da Vinci: The Complete Paintings by Peitro C. Marani, Pietro C. Marani ISBN: 0810935813 Publisher: Harry N Abrams Pub. Date: 01 November, 2000 List Price(USD): $85.00 |
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Title: The Woman With the Alabaster Jar: Mary Magdalen and the Holy Grail by Margaret Starbird, Terrance A. Sweeney ISBN: 1879181037 Publisher: Bear & Co Pub. Date: June, 1993 List Price(USD): $16.95 |
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