Nicole Page-Smith
Leonardo
We think of the deluge and not the flood. Leonardo was fascinated with water and the destruction of water but most of his painting of water are exquisite. You could imagine the flooding of the Arno and during winter the river is in full flow. Imagining water and destruction is not easy when confronted by Leonardo paintings or drawings, we are taken inside the cave or outside in a Homeric understanding of Hellenism. We may not be taken anywhere close with the deepest comprehension of anything Leonardo may have thought. The Platonic geometric structure of water was something Leonardo seemed interested in but most of Leonardo's note taking appears to be practical information. The writing of books back to front feels as though Leonardo printed the information or wanted someone to print notebooks. The writing in reverse could have had an influence on the painting work. Leonardo paintings do work in reproduction maybe because of the idea of printing and etchings. Book reproduction was a reasonably new phenomenon in the fifteenth century in Europe. Leonardo was a genius so as much as we can try and decipher his work, we may not be able to completely understand and with most artists you feel the information is there for the future even though the view is contemporary. Looking at images of Leonardo paintings is a different experience from looking at them in the flesh. Perhaps the water in the background was all Leonardo wanted to paint. The flow of ideas and water do match the algebraic equation. Leonardo.
The end.
by
Nicole Page-Smith
