Descripciones mejoradas de Syndetics:

This book is an anthology of writings by Leonardo da Vinci, with a selection of documents relating to his career as an artist. This book is an invaluable reference work for art historians as well as for anyone interested in the mind and methods of one of the world's greatest creative geniuses.

Reseñas proporcionadas por Syndetics

Library Journal Review

Yale has published these two books in conjunction with a London exhibition of Leonardo's drawings taken from the British Royal Library. Leonardo da Vinci contains brief biographical and critical essays along with a catalog of the exhibition. The reproductions of the exhibited drawings as well as of paintings by Leonardo (not included in the exhibition) are large and of good quality. An interesting addition is the inclusion of models built from some of Leonardo's designs and computer-generated images illustrating certain of his mathematical, architectural, and perspectival ideas. The book's division of Leonardo's oeuvre into sections (the vortex, the measuring eye, etc.) seems arbitrary and does not prove particularly useful for understanding the work. Still, the accompanying text, which includes well-chosen quotations from Leonardo's writings, is clearly written and suitable for general readers, interested laypersons, and students. Leonardo on Painting is a creation of Kemp and Walker, who have attempted to construct a coherent treatise on painting (never actually presented by Leonardo himself) using selections from the master's many surviving writings on the subject. Kemp acknowledges that this project ``involves some measure of conscious violence towards the original sources'' and that ``In some instances, a single passage on a particular topic has been compiled from as many as half a dozen separate sources.'' In addition to the heavily edited writings on painting, the book provides translations of letters, memoranda, and documents by or relating to Leonardo. While this work should be of interest primarily to scholars it could also be used by motivated laypersons.-- Kathryn W. Finkelstein, M.Ln., Cincinnati (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

CHOICE Review

A translation and compendium of Leonardo da Vinci's writings on art. As the brief introduction explains, Leonardo's haphazard notes for a treatise on painting were collected after his death by a pupil, Francesco Melzi. This anthology served as the core for the present book, having been reorganized by editor Martin Kemp and cotranslator Margaret Walker in a more coherent fashion and supplemented with a variety of analogous statements on artistic theory and practice culled from Leonardo's notebooks. Although Kemp admits that the assembly of the sources, some dating from as much as a quarter of a century apart, involved a "radical" selection and editing of Leonardo's writings, the result is not only highly readable but appears to do full justice to Leonardo's ideas. Also included are documentary sources and letters illuminating Leonardo's career; the manuscript sources for all of Leonardo's statements are fully cited in the notes. The volume is skillfully translated and is illustrated with appropriate examples of drawings and paintings by the artist. The only comparable, affordable version of Leonardo's writings was the "World's Classics" edition first published in 1952 (Selections from the Notebooks of Leonardo da Vinci, ed. by I.A. Richter); but Kemp's more lucid and better-organized text should serve as the standard source for years to come. Recommended for all academic libraries. J. I. Miller California State University, Long Beach

Notas de autor provistas por Syndetics

Martin Kemp is an actor and musician, known for being the bassist in Spandau Ballet and for his role as Steve Owen in EastEnders as well as his charitable work.