I went to the Da Vinci special exposition at the Louvre -- pics

[Recursion]

So I went to the Da Vinci special exposition at the Louvre this weekend.

A lot of it was works by artists copying or inspired by Da Vinci; which, I get, but it became the tail that wagged the dog. Still, the real stuff was breathtaking, to wit:













There's this almost palpable confidence in his pen & ink drawings that is stunning, particularly in person.

I realized that I always mentally put Da Vinci a generation later than he was. He was born around 1450 and died around 1520. He was not a contemporary of people like Copernicus or Martin Luther; he was a generation before them. In fact, he was kind of the last of the generation that thought of Europe, Asia, and Africa as all there was, and saw a still earth with the heavens spinning around it. The modernism and humanism of his drawings is kind of all the more remarkable for that fact.

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

1. Not to be persnickety, but he was actually younger than both Martin Luther (1483 - 1546)

and Copernicus (1473 – 1543). He, like both of them, was smack in the middle of the Renaissance, which had really started in the 14th century. Galileo, who came later, was the probable inventor of the telescope but Da Vinci had come up with a basic design for one, so he was at least considering what was "out there." He was really advanced, even for his time. The Walter Isaacson biography is fascinating.

[Recursion]

2. That was literally exactly what I said

He was a generation before them

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

4. You're right, I read the numbers backwards (I do that sometimes). They really overlapped, though,

all part of the same Zeitgeist.

[lapfog_1]

3. The amazing thing is how little of his works survive

only 20 paintings, at least 3 of which are the most famous paintings ever.

It is estimated that he may have only completed 32 works in his lifetime.

A remarkable talent. At least a generation (or 10) ahead of his time.

[Recursion]

5. Mona Lisa / Giaconda is in another wing of the Louvre permanently

I've still not done it because it's an absolute cattle call to go see it. They had a study he did for the Last Supper there and while it wasn't filled in in all the details what was so striking was that those amazingly expressive hands he could somehow paint were exactly like they were in the real thing in Milan. (Some rando tourist next to me was asking "why didn't they get the real one" and I tried to patiently explain that fresco murals in walls don't exactly travel well).

[tblue37]

6. When I saw the Mona Lisa I was surprised at how small the painting is. It looms large

in the imagination.

[murielm99]

8. I have heard other people say that.

[lunatica]

13. Yes. I had the same reaction.

It’s certainly larger than life otherwise! Way, way larger!

[3Hotdogs]

10. Genius, yes. BUT, was he stable?

[Recursion]

11. I love the random buxom ass that photobombs the 4th photo

It's like he was drawing the mother bathing her kid and said, no, what this picture needs is a truly phat ass.

[3Hotdogs]

17. Dats a lot of spaghetti to make that.

[smirkymonkey]

7. Amazing!

You are so fortunate to live in a city with such wonderful museums. That is one thing I miss about NYC. Just brilliant museums and exhibitions. Boston has a few nice museums, but nothing compared to NY or Paris.

[Recursion]

9. If I can plug a few *amazing* museums in Boston

The Children's Museum

The Cambridge Museum of Science

The BU MLK archives

The Blashka glass plant model exhibit at the Harvard Museum

The Shipyards/USS Constitution museum area

[smirkymonkey]

18. Also the Isabella Gardner Museum and Museum of Fine Arts.

There are some great museums here, I didn't mean to imply there weren't, but not at the level of Paris and NYC. I just miss the Metropolitan where you could go for a donation if you only wanted to spend a few hours at a particular exhibit or just wander around. It is amazing. My favorite place in NY was the Neue Gallerie which is the Lauder collection of German and Austrian expressionist art.

It is quite small but has some of the most amazing artwork you will ever see, including Gustav Klimt's masterpiece of Adele Bloch-Bauer among many others. Highlights from the museum’s extensive collection of Austrian art from the period 1890 to 1940, including major works by Christian Schad, Max Beckmann, Otto Dix, Oskar Kokoschka, Alfred Kubin, and Egon Schiel and many others. It was one of my favorite places to go (I studied in Vienna, Austria in college) and they had two Austrian cafes in the building with classic Austrian fare. It was such a pleasant way to spend an afternoon. It was like being in Austria for a day.

Other museums were equally as incredible - The Jewish Museum, The Guggenheim Museum, The Museum of Natural History, The Frick Gallerie, The MOMA, The Whitney, Cloisters (Part of the Met), etc. Many more. I just miss it all so much.

[lunatica]

12. I've always loved his drawings and studies more than his paintings

It’s his drawings that have made me appreciate drawing as a finished work of art in itself. An end goal.

I must add that Michaelangelo has had equal influence on me for the same reason.

Thanks so much for posting this!

[Recursion]

14. Glad you liked it!

And yeah, his drawings and studies are just amazing. Such unbelievable strength and confidence in those lines he drew, with a feather. Unbelievable to me.

[lunatica]

16. He never stopped experimenting

Never stopped pushing his mind into myriad possibilities and never let it rest on anything as the dead end result.

[Pluvious]

19. The Agony and the Ecstasy was one of the most memorable classics I've ever read !!

There's something about a dramatized history that really breathes life into a story.

That scene in the morning, of the people's reaction to David's statue, is unforgettable.

I would so love to visit Florence.

[JDC]

15. Thank you for sharing this. Very cool