Thursday, December 3, 2009

Ginevra de' Benci or the National Gallery of Art II

This painting, by Leonardo Da Vinci, completed in 1475, hangs in the National Gallery of Art in Washington DC.

Anyone can see this painting any day of the week for free. Imagine: a inarguably priceless object, shimmering with virtuosity, from the hand of a man so gifted that he could paint this and do a thousand other things brilliantly, just waiting for you or me to walk through and look at it.

No stupid action movie or conspiracy book can compare with this real- life miracle. This is Leonardo, this is a masterpiece of art, beautifully lit and displayed and it's ours. It belongs to us.

I could go on and on about the brushstrokes, the textures of paint on the hair, and the background, the pallette, the composition, the expression of the sitter, but why? You can just go see it for yourself.

We are so lucky.

1 comment:

SueWho said...

I don't think anyone could have put that better! It makes me want to go down to the National Gallery w/you next time.