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Customer Reviews (6)

Good for an interactive book
This book is good for anyone that like an interactive type of book. By this I mean you actually get to see the document and letters that Leonardo wrote. You see how his backwords hand writing kept everyone else from reading his manuscripts while he was alive. Also you see some of the drawings he made and how he used both sides of the paper instead of one side like many people once thought.

The Treasures of Leonardo da Vinci
I thoroughly enjoy this book, the inserts are great, text is well written and extremely informative.I received this book in a timely manner and in excellent shape.I would strongly recommend this book to anyone.
M. Day Hawk

Makes Leonardo live
This is a great hands on book.Being able to take out documents and feel that you have a connection with the time, place and people.Beautifully produced, great graphics and text.
It's a pick up and read bits book.Accessible to everyone.
I was thrilled when i received it, even if your not a Di Vinci fan its a beautiful book to own.

A book for Leo Lovers and the general public too!
After a long while, here comes a book that is actually exciting to go through page by page - and I mean that literally! Along with the highly informative text, the book offers a wonderfully collaborative balance of both scholarly and creative research - perhaps very much in the taste of Leonardo himself. This is a truly unique book for all us art lovers - who may or may not share a great fascination for the life and works of Leo. Landrus indeed offers an interesting and imaginative look into the life and passion of the great Renaissance Man!

An unsual, informed, and welcome approach to da man, da vinci
Amazon should have more pictures of this book, thanks to its unusual format.If you want to know more about Leonardo you've got to have a 'look' at this portfolio format, boxed, facsimile packed, well-written (IMO) book.I have a handful of titles about him, but few of them take this much of an interdisciplinary approach - so that it's as interesting to read as to look at.It seems to have the latest independent research (see info on the Annunciation, Last Supper, Vitruvian Man, Giant Crossbow) that you may not see elsewhere, and it recaps recent findings (see info on the Virgin of the Rocks, heart valve studies, and flying machine).In most places it's absolutely fresh (even the Mona Lisa info!), not a rehash of the usual Leonardo stuff.Just a couple oddities I've found:the tiny Franchino Gaffurius print on p. 19 is a negative print (not the positive that it's supposed to be), and the Last Supper perspective layout on p. 35 is only partially reproduced, missing the full diagram that might look like the author's diagram as reproduced in Martin Kemp's 'Leonardo da Vinci, The Marvellous Works of Nature and Man' (OUP 2006).Still, 'Treasures' is thorough, in-depth, very interesting, and concise, a rare treat. ... Read more

Product Description
"This work is an attractive and friendly resource for students... The strengths of this biography are its attractive illustrations, the time line of Da Vinci’s life across the bottom of each page, and the simple presentation of the facts of his life. Young readers will find the book visually appealing, and those searching for factual information on Da Vinci will find it helpful..." —VOYA ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Terrific Primer on Leonardo Da Vinci
Targeted at grade-schoolers, this book from National Geographic provides a beautifully illustrated overview of the life and works of the famous Renaissance Man. The book includes numerous photos and reprints of Da Vinci's most famous works, and well as reproductions of some of his designs.

While he's most famous for The Mona Lisa and The Last Supper, Da Vinci, in fact, only completed a few paintings during his lifetime, magnificent though they may be. Da Vinci painted, sculpted, created sets for plays, and designed numerous machines for war.

The book is well-written, and is designed and laid out beautifully. The amazing imagery used in the book makes for a great way to introduce Leonardo and the Renaissance. ... Read more

Product Description
Beautifully illustrated throughout, this book exploresthe life and works of Leonardo da Vinci.Organized chronologically,we are taken step by step through time to learn more of the man andhis creations in relation to those of his time. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Incredible find!
This book has to be one of THE best books I have purchased over the years of Da Vinci's work.
Not only does it show his work, but compares it to the artists that influenced him.
I love the quality of the photos and the close ups of the art is wonderful, showing great details, but THE BEST part is the section devoted to the Last Supper! It show not only the "Before" the restoration but the "After."
I was blown away at how much color and details were stripped for the "restoration". The Before shows how rich the colors were and for those who are fans of Dan Brown's Da Vinci Code, it really makes you wonder if that isn't a portrait of Mary.
It is really worth every penny.I am so glad I got this one. I will not be letting go of it any time soon! ... Read more

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Customer Reviews (2)

Images are Dull
I found the images (206) in total to be rather dull. The image number count of 206 includes details of larger images so you really aren't getting 206 distinct images.For example, you get an image of the Mona Lisa, a detail image of her face, a detailed images of her hands, and an image of her with a pure white background.Speaking of the Mona Lisa image - it could use a bit of touch up. There is a line in the top border of the image that looks as if the original source for this image had a tear or rip. It's distracting to the image as a whole.A search of wikimedia commons web-site produced similar looking images I would have thought Dover would have fixed this little flaw. Of course, maybe they were looking to be true to the surviving original - I don't know I haven't seen it.

Speaking of the wikimedia commons web-site one can find many of the same illustrations here as one can in the Dover book/CD package.One image in particular, if you compare the pixel dimensions and size of the Vitruvian Man from the Dover book/CD (the hi-resolution version they offer) compared to the one found on the wikimedia commons website you 7.5 x 10.2 inches in size at 300 DPI (2258x3070 pixels) from Wiki versus Dover's 4.4 x 6.3 inches at 300 DPI (1330x1904 pixels) and the Dover version has a larger border.It begs the question why buy the cow when you can get the milk for free.

Granted this is just one comparison but I thought readers would appreciate it nonetheless.

terrific
This is a marvelous tool if you want da Vinci notebook pages or paintings for the classroom. They print beautifully an easily on paper or transparencies. ... Read more

Product Description
The life and work of the great Italian Renaissance artist and scientist Leonardo da Vinci (1452–1519) have proved endlessly fascinating for generations. In Leonardo da Vinci, Sherwin Nuland completes his twenty-year quest to understand an unlettered man who was a painter, architect, engineer, philosopher, mathematician, and scientist. What was it that propelled Leonardo’s insatiable curiosity? Nuland finds clues in his subject’s art, relationships, and scientific studies—as well as in a vast quantity of notes that became widely known in the twentieth century. Scholarly and passionate, Nuland’s Leonardo da Vinci takes us deep into the first truly modern, empirical mind, one that was centuries ahead of its time. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (16)

Boring
No passion about the subject. Talked about Leonardo being a homosexual for pages upon pages bringing in Freud. Freud? I thought he was proven to be the wierdo not everyone else. I'm on the last chapter, it was painful reading.I was excited to read about this man but Nuland apparently has a nack of taking the joy out of a subject. It just never got any easier to read.

Of Most Interest to Doctors and Biologists
Leonardo was the prototypical "Renaissance Man," a fact that renders him remarkably difficult for any one biographer to encapsulate fully. Add to that the page limitations imposed upon writers of the Penguin Lives (the typical Life is roughly 165 pages long), and you have an impossible task, no matter how competent the author.

Sherwin Nuland is that rarest of all creatures, an articulate doctor (surgeon), who has written several popular books about his craft, including the very popular How We Die: Reflections on Life's Final Chapter. So he was the ideal choice to write about Leonardo's anatomical studies, which he does well.

What he omits is any discussion of Leonardo's other accomplishments in art, mechanics, aeronautics,... But what modern writer could have written knowledgeably about those wide-ranging fields? Perhaps Isaac Asimov, but he died in 1992.

To Dr. Nuland's credit, he doesn't try, producing instead a fine book on those topics he does understand. Still, he doesn't capture the man.

For those who are interested, there is an excellent film, The Life of Leonardo Da Vinci, produced for Italian television in 1971,that provides a superb overview of Leonardo's life. A labor of love by the Italians, it is the definitive film on the subject.

Laborious read, focusing mainly on da Vinic's anatomical studies
Armed with a limited understanding of da Vinci's paintings, scientific research and anatomical studies, I picked up this book hoping to gather a better understanding of Leonardo's life and work.Unfortunately, I found this book to be a laborious read, focusing mainly on da Vinic's anatomical studies.

I wouldn't say this book is horrible, or that one shouldn't read it.Rather, it's just not the book for you if you desire a more traditional biography.Yet, I'm not certain a traditional biography could exist concerning da Vinci.Large gaps exist in our understanding of him, and much of what we do know is speculative - except where his anatomical work is considered, and which this book mainly covers.

Too Brief in Parts.Yet Some Parts Brilliant.
There can be little doubt that Leonardo da Vinci was a man of great intellect and skill.His impact upon society, however, has not been great.His inventions were never brought to fruition and his work in anatomy, while treasured today as being complex and far sighted, did little for the practice of medicine at the time of its publication.Yet, despite all this, it is a brave man who totally disregards Leonardo.

The author of this work on da Vinci, Sherwin B. Nuland, is a surgeon; an interesting choice for a biographer.Nuland brings a particular skill set to the work but not a complete skill set.The first portion of the book that deals in general with Leonardo's life is not strong.The reader is whisked through the years without ever feeling that he has gained any insights whatsoever.But, when Nuland turns to anatomy in the final chapters, the books takes a whole new turn.Clearly, the writer's knowledge shines and the reader sees in much greater depth the genius that was Leonardo.

At a time when there were no X rays, anesthesia or any real knowledge of the body's circulatory system, Leonardo's work was brilliant.Rather than describe the workings of the human body, Leonardo used drawings as his medium.Working with cadavers and having to work at great haste, Leonardo was a man ahead of his time.Nuland allows the reader to truly imagine the skill of the man.

Overall, Nuland's book is a work in two parts.The first, which is general biography, has only slight merit.His subsequent analysis of Leonardo's work in anatomy reads wonderfully.It is a great pity that the whole book could not have been of the same standard as the second part.

So, how much do you want to learn about anatomy
This is a small book (166 pages) and it's focus is small also.Nuland really wanted to write a book only about DaVinci's facination with the human body and his accomplishments in describing his findings (some of which weren't proven until the middle of the twentieth century).It's a book totally about hero worship.But, Nuland does tell you this on the first page, you just have to realize it.

This is an eight chapter book, the first six read like cliff notes on DaVinci's life. The last two are totally turned over to a description of some of the contents of his notebooks, their history (as to who had them, and now has them) and of the number that have been lost or butchered over the last five hundred years.

There is one chapter almost completely turned over to Freud's psycho-sexual analysis of DaVinci and his paintings, and another to the history and speculation about and of the Mona Lisa.

Unless your a real Nuland fan, or a fan of anatomical historiography, you can skip this book, and read the biography by Charles Nichols. ... Read more

Product Description
Featuring engaging text and
numerous illustrations this book
brings Leonardo da Vinci to life
in a format that s both
entertaining and informative. This book explores da Vinci s unique artistic talents and at
the same time introduces Leonardo the mathematician,
urban planner, cartographer, poet, musician, astronomer, and
medical scientist. Readers will learn about the scientific
discoveries that inspired the young artist and the cultural
forces that nourished his creative spirit. This book features
high quality reproductions of his most famous works along
with notebook sketches of dissected bodies, flying
machines, and even robots. The artist s personal life is told
through fascinating anecdotes that look beyond the myth to
bring the man into clearer focus. Throughout, the author s
engaging tone allows readers to experience familiar
masterpieces with a fresh eye. ... Read more

Product Description
Leonardo da Vinci (1452–1519) stands as a supreme iconin the history of Western civilization. With much of his work lost orunfinished, the key to his legacy is without doubt to be found in theenormous body of his extant drawings and accompanying manuscriptnotes. Famous for their beauty and technical virtuosity, Leonardo’sdrawings were avidly sought by collectors even during hislifetime. This handsome book offers a unified and fascinating portraitof Leonardo as a draftsman, integrating his diverse roles as anartist, scientist, inventor, theorist, and teacher. A chronologicalframework is also provided in order to shed light on his extraordinarylife and career. The essays and entries—written by the world’sleading Leonardo scholars—survey the wide variety of drawing typesthat Leonardo used and also examine a small group of works by artistscritical to his artistic development in Florence and to hismultifaceted activity in Milan.Amazon.com Review
Artist, theorist, scientist, and inventor--these words cannot capture thegenius that is Leonardo DaVinci. However, curator and editor Carmen C.Bambach brings us a little closer to unlocking his mystery in LeonardoDaVinci: Mater Draftsman. The book comprises a collection of 11 essays byworld-renowned Leonardo connoisseurs, along with 515 exquisite illustrations,to create a perfect balance between scholarship and aesthetics. Serving asthe catalogue for the exhibition of the same name at New York's MetropolitanMuseum of Art, the book focuses on Leonardo's drawings: his studies for someof his unfinished, lost, or unrealized paintings and projects, stunninganatomical and engineering studies, 8 pages from the Codex Leicester(Leonardo's draft for a treatise on the dynamics of water), and his studiesof grotesque physiognomies, which taken together, reveal the master'snotion that beauty and ugliness are reciprocally enhanced by theirjuxtaposition.The result also sheds light onhis extraordinary contribution as a draftsman "to the design process ofnarrative composition."

Leonardo has left us a mere handful of mostly unfinished--albeit magnificent--paintings. Yet, as Bambach explains, the quantity of his extant drawings(about 4,000 or more) is about 4 times that of the most prolific16th-century draftsman. To be sure, it is through these drawings, alongwith the eloquent commentary, that Leonardo's infinite and dynamic creativepower can best be glimpsed. From the whimsical to the sublime, from thescientific to the mechanical, these drawings reveal Leonardo's dependence onobservation and nature, as well as his tireless use of drawing as a means to explore and express his ever-probing mind. Thecatalogue takes us on a chronological journey,revealing the vast influence of Leonardo's teacher Andrea Verrocchio, andsubsequently shows us Leonardo's influence on his students and beyond. The beauty, power, and scope of this book areevidence that there is no end to pondering his remarkable and enigmatic genius. --Silvana Tropea ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

A Masterpiece Publication
World famous for their sublime beauty and technical virtuosity, Leonardo's drawings were avidly sought by collectors even during his lifetime. In this day of being flooded with inferior music and art in the mass media it is without question that Leonardo da Vinci remains an icon of Italian art history and a pillar of Western civilization.

So much of his work has been sadly lost or is in an unfinished state, one key to his legacy is found in the body of his extant drawings and accompanying manuscript notes which have survived.

Yale University Press has once again released a masterpiece publication published in association with The Metropolitan Museum of Art to compliment the first comprehensive international loan exhibition of Leonardo's drawings in the United States. This book is the catalogue for the show to be held at The Metropolitan Museum of Art from January 22 to March 30, 2003 and the Musée du Louvre, Paris, from April 28 to July 7, 2003.

This handsome volume offers a unified and fascinating portrait of Leonardo as a draftsman, integrating his diverse roles as an artist, scientist, inventor, theorist, and teacher. A chronological framework is also provided in order to shed light on his extraordinary life and career.

The essays and entries are brilliantly written by the world's leading Leonardo scholars. They survey the wide variety of drawing types that Leonardo used, and also examine a small group of works by artists critical to his artistic development in Florence and to his multifaceted activity in Milan.

This is an invaluable source of information on Leonardo. The Codex Leicester is examined as are the much copied studies of grotesques physiognomies. There is a discussion of Leonardo's drawings in Milan and their influence on the graphic work of Milanese artists providing useful clues to his enormous influence on those artists as well as the best artists of today. Leonardo's graphic oeuvre is examined as is his early drapery studies.

An impressive catalogue if that is what one could call this masterwork of publication it is a must for Italian art scholars and art connoisseurs period. This is no lightweight work at 512 pp. 50 b/w + 200 colorplates with detailed descriptions of 138 individual works surveying the wide variety of types within his portfolio of work. This is destined to be a highly sought after volume.

Leonardo DaVinci-Master Draftsman by Bambach
This book is written for art enthusiasts. The potential
readership includes historians, artists, museum curators
and students of world culture, art and history. The work
is perfect for a term or class project.

It has many famous
drawings and paintings by DaVinci. For instance, the spectacular
"Adoration of the Magi" appears in full color. There are
numerous apprenticeship drawings and renditions on the anatomy
of humans and animals. For instance, there is a very detailed
rendition of a horse leg. This work would make a wonderful
gift for a teenager or art buff. The full-color drawings alone are worth several dollars
apiece. The book is a tremendous value .

The Definitive Tome on da Vinci as genius
LEONARDO DA VINCI: MASTER DRAFTSMAN is a magnificent addition to the library about this extraordinary Renaissance genius.Published as a 'catalogue' for the exhibition that just left the Metropolitan Museum in New York, the weighty book is successful on all levels.The Curator and driving force fo the exhibition, Carmen C. Bambach, has firmly established her credentials in this vast survey of da Vinci's drawings of human anatomy, both precise observations (eg 'Abdomen and Left Leg of a Nude Man Standing in Profile page 556) and artistic distortions ( the grotesque faces on pages 684 - 693), of his 'inventions' as a scientist, of simple observations ('A Copse of Trees'on page 469 for instance), of the technical aspects of drawing and painting (brilliantly executed examples of draping the figure as on pages 289 and 563), and sketches for numerous painting proposals.The first 225 pages of this elegant book are devoted to various essays about da Vinci, all written by erudite scholars who are immensely readable.The last half of the book is an in-depth presentation of the catalogue of the show, serenely annotated by Carmen Bambach.There are ample sections of documentation and easy references to the bibiliography and timeline for da Vinci's life.The drawings and paintings are beautifuly reproduced on first quality paper and the book, (though heavy as a lap book!), is artistically designed and produced.This magnificent volume will be the gold standard for da Vinci's drawings and should be part of every library on the Renaissance and on art history.Highly Recommended. ... Read more

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Product Description
This beautiful book is the first full-length study of Leonardo's beginnings as an artist. It discusses his years in Verrocchio's workshop and his subsequent work on his own, the development of his technique, and the relationship of his early paintings to each other and to their sources. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Identifies Leonardo's Involvement With Early Paintings
The title of this book should probably be 'Leonardo Da Vinci Origins Of An ARTISTIC Genius'. It was the title that intrigued me and made me want to read this book. Leonardo's education and maturation process in relation to painting is really not that unusual.

This book does demonstrate with a lot of precise details how Leonardo's involvement and association with paintings from his early period can be proven or disproven. In some cases advanced scientific techniques such as x-ray analysis are cited to disprove or clarify statements made by previous authors about Leonardo's supposed involvement in various paintings. This book would be very helpful if someone was, for example, writing a paper about Leonardo's early career as far as exactly what paintings he worked on.

However the mysterious aspect about Leonardo da Vinci is not his painting which he eventually grew tired of and he sometimes didn't even bother to finish his own paintings. The mysterious thing about Leonardo is how did he all of a sudden become (at least in his own mind) an engineer, architect, scientist, etc., when he was never trained in any of these things ? How did someone who was trained as a painter and artist make that transition ? That's where the mystery deepens about Leonardo da Vinci.

As far as the books I've read so far that mystery has never been fully explained other than he was self taught. His art was very important for this transition because it allowed him to record his basically limitless ideas at a time when photography didn't exist yet.

But a good follow on to this book would be called 'Leonardo Da Vinci Origins Of A RENAISSANCE Genius' or 'Scientific Genius' or something like that.

Whether some or most of Leonardo's scientific ideas were valid is I think open to debate. But he did have some of the characteristics required for true genius which are intense curiosity, being very observant, and having almost unlimited energy. And he was a good painter, that much can be stated positively. ... Read more

Product Description
As the success of blockbusters like The Da Vinci Code shows, the incomparable and enigmatic Leonardo da Vinci continues to captivate. In this widely acclaimed biography, Charles Nicholl uncovers the man behind the myth of the "Renaissance master." Painter, sculptor, inventor, draftsman, anatomist—Leonardo’s life and career encompassed so many of the creative achievements that made his era spectacular. Nicholl skillfully captures it all while tracing his subject’s journey from an illegitimate child in Tuscany to his service with some of the most powerful families of Renaissance Europe. Rich with historical background, packed with black-and-white and color illustrations, and utterly engaging, this is the definitive look at a figure whose genius reaches out to us through the centuries. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (17)

Just about all you could ask for...
...in a book about Da Vinci.I mean, the guy lived half a millenium ago, for crying out loud -- you think it's easy piecing together information about his life?I think Nicholl did an amazing job assembling a slice of an image here, a quotation there, a passing reference written by somebody else over here, a hunch of a guess over there....

...Really, this book feels as close as we'll ever get to "the truth" about what Da Vinci did and thought, year to year.No, we'll probably never understand just how and why his mind worked the way it did, what made him who he ultimately was, but Nicholl wonderfully illuminates the world he lived in, and the paths he crossed along the way.If you're like me, you know a bit about the man, but not much.Well, this takes "not much" and expands it out significantly so that, by the end of the book, you feel that you have some glimmer of who this fellow was, that you'd recognize (and appreciate) him if you passed him on a street in Milan in the early 1500s.

The only thing holding me back from giving this 5 stars is the images.There were plenty, yes, but I think the color-plate paintings needed more space than they received, a full page rather than being squeezed 2-4 to a page. There must be some way to give better visuals to a book without turning it into a coffee table variety.Maybe enclose a CD?

Interesting insight into Da Vinci as a man
This is the first book on Da Vinci that I have read.Some of the other reviewers have commented that the book has shortcomings, notably that it only covers a limited set of all of Da Vinci's accomplishments.This is true, but what I found interesting about this book is Nicholl's descriptions of Da Vinci's humanity.Here was a man, born illegitimately, who strove his whole life for fatherly approval and never got it.Da Vinci had little formal education and regretted it - he studied under many men who advanced the arts and sciences and it is remarkable what Da Vinci achieved with such informal training in many areas.Da Vinci was a polymath - he had so much going on inside his head all the time- limitless imagination.It really is amazing he managed to complete anything.Also somewhat amusing is how Da Vinci did not always like his patrons, and Nicholl describes his lengthy relationship with one benefactress who Da Vinci continually put off or avoided, despite the promise of a hefty payment for an art work.I was also surprised to learn that Da Vinci was not really very financially successful.

I recommend this book if you want to get a picture of Leonardo complete with all human failings.Nicholl's book provides such insight.I enjoyed reading it.

Informative, but boring
The book "flights of the mind" by charles Nicholl, it one that has a lot of research behind it. I respect that, although when reading, I found a few problems. First of all, nicholl throws facts at you like a text book, and so you can lose track of where you are, and how it adds to Leonardo's legacy. Nicholl also tended to get sidetracked when explaining in depth something that had nothing to do with Leonardo. He also made a lot of assumptions that I feel he didn't make. I think he used a lot of information directly from other books, not that theirs anything wrong with that. He also would at times begin to repeat himself. The book had a huge amount of information within it. I found it was hard to pick out the important information and the information added as an overall picture. All in all, the book was heavy in facts, but with this it became a chore to read.

Reads like a text book
I was looking to learn more about this fascinating man.This book gave me details, but really no story.It was a laborious read.It read like a text book.It is filled with so many facts, that you lose track of what da Vinci accomplished.Really a waste of time.

Maybe it's just me
There are more life details in this book than I ever wanted to read.This made for a bit of a slow, boring read.I'm still looking for a good biography on Da Vinci. ... Read more

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The Caldecott Award-winning Provensens have combined artistry and insight to create a unique and beautiful pop-up. Full color. ... Read more

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Also available as the fifth book in a five volume set (ISBN#0815329334) ... Read more

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Here are clear reproductions of over 1200 anatomical drawings by one of humanity’s greatest geniuses—still considered, nearly five centuries later, the finest ever rendered. Admired by artists and scientists alike. 215 plates.
... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Not for me
If you are thinking that buying this book would help you learning a secret of leonardo's drawing, this is not that book you are looking for .You would learn better with bridgeman's anatomy book or somebody else.This book is pure anatomy and science.

If you like reading texts and texts, then this is probably for you, but not me.

Leonardo's Masterpiece
Leonardo Da Vinci's anatomical drawings, due to his extreme curiosity, became one of his most profound works to date. Published by Dover from the original text 1952. The book is set up in 2 columns and broken up intoheaders of different anatomical structures; either of bones, muscles,ventricles of the heart or brains. The chapters are broken into systems:nervous, cardiovascular, myological, osteological, respitory, alimentaryand others. Within the text there are italicized words. These are the wordswritten on the drawing itself, in Leonardo's usual backward writing style.Some of you might be curious, beyond the drawings themselves to read whatLeonardo thought at the time. And from there is the authors commentary. Forthose interested in anatomy, drawing, painting or anything in the artfield, this book is highly reccoemended, for it has limitless referencevalue. I continually look at it for my drawings. One will also notice thatmany of the "models" are of the same body or person. This isbecause Leonardo asked a friend on his deathbed if he could cut him up,dissect him and then draw him. The friend, of course, consented to this,and so we have Leonardo's masterpiece. Highly reccomended! Alsoreccomended is his Notebooks, also printed by Dover. ... Read more

Product Description
The quintessential "Renaissance man," Leonardo da Vinci (1452–1519) is still recognized today for his accomplishments in science, architecture, and philosophy, as well as his artistic masterworks. Full-color reproductions and thorough text provide a quick yet solid introduction to this master. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

El personaje más fascinante del Renacimiento.
La serie Basic Art de la Editorial Taschen funciona como introduccion al tema, es una peque?a guia muy ilustrada y condensada para todos aquellos que viven sin tiempo para leer un trabajo mas profundo o solo desea comensar a entender sobre la vida y obra de su pintor favorito, asi que el libro es peque?o pero vale la pena darle una ojeada.

En esta edicion en ESPA?OL sobre la vida y obra de Leonardo Da Vinci (el personaje m?s fascinante del Renacimiento)la cual esta en el formato de pasta dura(hardcover) nos ense?a las primeras obras del gran maestro del Renacimiento, una cronologia de su vida y muchas ilustraciones de sus pinturas mas conocidas como tambien las que no son parte de un tour y estan en colecciones privadas, es una obra bellisima no es la obra definitiva ya que hay trabajos mucho mas completo sobre su vida e influencia pero si es un buen comienso para entender al famoso y controversial Da Vinci. 96 paginas totalmente ilustrada a color con muchos detalles de pintura y bosetos del pintor asi como sus dotes en otras ramas como la musica la escultura y las ciencias pero esta obra es dedicada por completo a su pintura.Muy recomendado. ... Read more

Product Description
Provides a brief illustrated history of Leonardo da Vinci for the teenage market with emphasis on his artistic contributions and his scientific inventions. Includes a frank discussion of the three great challenges that drove his desire to succeed: his illegitimate birth, his left-handness, and his probable homosexuality. Includes a timeline of his life and events occurring elsewhere in the world. ... Read more

Product Description
Clark's study of Leonardo is generally considered the clearest introduction available to the work of the controversial genius. This edition contains 128 plates, integrated into the text; a revised list of dates; an updated bibliography; and a new introduction. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (10)

a poetic and literally account about Leonardo
It was a pleasant surprise to me reading that book. I was really impressed byKenneth Clark's style.It is a kind of poetic,I think.He also tries to analyse the symbolic language of the artist, to penetrate to Leonard's mind. Although the logic of the passage is not very clear,
Clark is trying to transfer the intellectual context of each picture.
In fact, he lacked a systematic knowledge of the manuscripts, but he conveys a penetraion that is at heart founded upon his intuitions of the paintings and drawings. Clark has tried to realise Leonardo's mind behind the paintings and writings. I am fond of the literary description he uses in a a way we are relatively unfamiliar, an old way.
When I started to read the book I was looking forward to reachthe "Last Supper". Clark exactlly described my own feelings when I saw the picture. 'It is a work of nature than a work of man.Before such a picture the difficulty is not to analyse our feelings as to have any feelings at all." He has tried to imagine and understand Leonardo's feelings and thoughts when he was painting the "Last Supper" and exactly that he tried to transmit to us, in such a sweet and poetic way. I could never had enough of this part.
I was also impressed from the way he describes the" Virgin of the rocks". After an elaborated description of the angel and the infant Saint John and the virgin as well he wonders if the whole picture has a deeper meaning. Besides, he also juxtaposes the two "Virgins of the rocks".
There are a few parts of Leonardo's drawings for the horses although it took him such a long time to draw them. He liked to draw horses very much. In fact, there aren't much about his drawings or his notes.
I didn't like the fact that pictures were not coloured. How can one imagine the coloures Leonardo used and the true tuxture of the painting?
It is a great disadvantage not having coloured plates.
In conclusion, I would liKe to cite the following: To Leonardo a landscape like a human being, was a part of a vast machine, to be understood part by part if possible, in the whole. Rocks were not simply decorative silhouettes. They were part of the earth's bones with anatomy of their own caused by some remote seismic upheaval. Clouds were not random curls of the brush, drawn by some celestial artist, but were the congregation of tiny drops formed from the evaporation of the sea andsoon would pour back their rain into the rivers.(discussion of the 'Mona Lisa").

Very disappointing plates
This really wonderful book by Clark, with its good introduction by Martin Kemp, was marred by the very bad quality of the plates. They're all black and white and every one is washed out (with the exception of the color cover), perhaps because the printing plates are old and worn out. Shame on Penguin for releasing such a poor quality product, especially in these days of quality reproduction. If you can be content with just the extremely good text (I was not), no problem, but be warned. The copy I received 3/11/09 was a 1993 reprint of the 1989 edition.

Refreshing
I uedd this text foran Art History classand it was not only useful and insightful, but also intriguing and well-organized. After having so many dry texts that are all fact, no fun, this was a refreshing change. It still had all the fact of a text book, but presented in a much more entertining and useful manner. I just wish all Art History texts were as easy to read while still being as informative

An excellent introduction to Leonardo
This work provides a good introduction to the fascinating subject of Leonardo and his creative genius. Clark writes with elegance and insight about the whole span of Leonardo's career. He focuses on the drawings and provides the reader with an understanding of Leonardo's technical and artistic accomplishment. Clark is also reserved in his claims of understanding the mystery of Leonardo's personality and human relation.
Like Leonardo in his inventions Clark does not supply the full and final detail that gives the complete picture. His work is a fascinating introduction which however gives a basic understanding of the subject.

The eternal genius
Kenneth Clark gives an unpropogating look at Da Vinci. All too often Leonardo's name has been attached to support a variety of causes of this or that nature. Being, seemingly, irreligious and unphilosophic while being the quintessential Renassaince Man. His name is often used as a mascot to justify the ideals of this or that group of whatever. He was clearly an animal rights lover, possibly a closet Franciscan, in all probability a homosexual (although not much of an activist). Leonardo was into his thoughts and had little patience for something that was already complete in his mind. He left scores of unfinished works, and minons of angry patrons - contrary to Bornstin's book that Leonardo was in constant search of patrons - Clark says he had many unhappy patrons. Leonardo was an animal lover who hated violence (although he designed armaments of various sorts). His depth of religious devotion could be argued, but he was not irreverant, as some have claimed. Leonardo was rather Franciscan and had a fondness for animals and individuality. He was free and valued his own individualism. Other than Da Vinci's notebooks nothing much authentic comes down to us. Every other work of Leonardo has been severally retouched or destroyed, what there is left of Leonardo's work is highly speculative - what bit is in his hand ect. Clark gives a healthy, vibrant, nonproselytizing look at a genius - something anyone might find interesting. ... Read more

Product Description
Leonardo da Vinci (1452-1519) possessed one of the greatest minds of all time; his importance and influence are inestimable. This XXL-format comprehensive survey is the most complete book ever made on the subject of this Italian painter, sculptor, architect, engineer, scientist and all-around genius. With huge, full-bleed details of Leonardo's masterworks, this highly original publication allows the reader to inspect the subtlest facets of his brushstrokes.

* Part I explores Leonardo's life and work in ten chapters, drawing upon his letters, contracts, diary entries, and writings. All of his paintings are presented and interpreted in depth, with The Annunciation and The Last Supper featured on fold-out pages.

* Part II comprises a catalogue raisonne of Leonardo's paintings, which covers all of his surviving and lost painted works and includes texts describing their states of preservation. Each and every painting that can be justifiably attributed to Leonardo is included here; thanks to new findings and scientific research, this is the first time his definitive painting oeuvre is being published.

* Part III contains an extensive catalogue of his drawings (numbering in the thousands, they cannot all be reproduced in one book); 663 are presented, arranged by category (architecture, technical, anatomical, figures, proportion, cartography, etc). Over half of the drawings included were provided by Windsor Castle, marking the first time that the Castle has allowed a publisher to reproduce so many of their drawings.

This sumptuous TASCHEN offering is the most thorough and beautifully produced Leonardo book ever published.Amazon.com Review
Lying open, this unutterably wonderful book is almost the size of the Mona Lisa and about as hefty as a slab of The Last Supper's monastery wall. All 34 paintings are here (including what we know of the lost ones), many with huge and immensely illuminating details, plus 663 drawings. The reproductions are stunning, on paper sturdy enough to serve as wings on some of the flying machines depicted on pages 644 to 671. The precision of the images amazes: the delicate petals fingered by the larger-than-life-size baby Jesus in Madonna of the Carnation; the wailing, dismembered victims of Leonardo's scary scythed chariots; Mary's transparent drapery in the Annunciation; the bands of sunlight streaking each swirling curl of Ginevra de Benci; Mona Lisa's gossamer veil and intricately embroidered gown; even, unless my eyes deceive me, one of the fingerprints Leonardo famously left while daubing paint by hand.

Customer Reviews (25)

leonardo davinci is the greatest genius for all times
This is the best most spectacular book on leonardo to date.What can i say that hasnt already been said in the reviews above except that i cant believe that a couple of reviews gave 3 outof5 stars for this book. I think the book deserves 10 out of 10. The book is a masterpiece in itself. Keep up the great work.

awesome
this book is a daily source of admiration, exposed on our table and we change the page practically every day to have a new work of wonder to admire every day. combined with more and deeper information on leonardo da Vinci the true art becomes clear.

Masterful Book
I first saw this outstanding book at the Palm Springs Air Museum's Da Vinci exhibit last month. It is a comprehensive and beautiful tribute to Da Vinci's genius that young and old alike can enjoy for decades. Spending an hour glancing through its pages is a visual treat; reading it to more deeply appreciate his multiple talents will take years. Though the price of the book may seem high, it is an unique volume and worth the price.

Art Education Wouldn't Be Complete
without studying Leonardo da Vinci, one of the greatest Italian Renaissance artist and would-be inventor of all time.He left us a legacy of paintings, drawings, diagrams, inventions, and even sculpture for all to see.He's known more than the Mona Lisa painting, he's an inventor of sorts as well as a very fine draughtsman.

This book should be a required course for art students everywhere.

WOW what a book!
The massive size of this book is only dwarfed by the enormous amount of information it contains.Did you know Leonardo Da Vinci conceptualized the helicopter...or the x-ray machine...or even the engine???? He did indeed and it's all in this comprehensive anthem.I highly recommend this book for the Da Vinci neophyte as well as the most avid "Leo scholar" as both will be awed and amazed. ... Read more

Product Description

Product Description
FOR USE IN SCHOOLS AND LIBRARIES ONLY. How did Leonardo da Vinci become interested in flight? What are some of his most famous paintings? Do his scientific ideas measure up to what we know today? Find out the answers to these questions and more in this Magic Tree House Research Guide. ... Read more