Never in the history of the National Gallery has an exhibition sparked such interest that, before even opening on November 9 it was already sold out until mid December. This is perhaps because ‘Leonardo da Vinci: Painter at the Court of Milan’ is the most complete exhibition of Leonardo’s rare surviving paintings ever held and is the first show to be dedicated entirely to this creative genius’ (who was a scientist, inventor and draughtsman) career as a painter, and his quest to create ideals of beauty. The exhibit focuses on the work Leonardo produced as court painter to Duke Lodovico Sforza in Milan in the late 1480s and 1490s, and one of its great highlights is that two versions of Leonardo’s ‘Virgin of the Rocks’ – belonging to the National Gallery and the Louvre – will also be shown together for the first time.
‘Leonardo da Vinci: Painter at the Court of Milan’ on at The National Gallery until 5 February 2012
www.nationalgallery.org.uk
