This year marks the 500th anniversary of the death of Leonardo da Vinci. As Leonardo is a worldwide cultural symbol, major art museums and galleries around the world are holding various commemorative exhibitions and special exhibitions relevant to Da Vinci's art. This exhibition, hosted by CAFA Art Museum in Beijing, China, starts from the unique perspective of Leonardo’s master-apprentice relationship with the Leonardeschi, opens a window for the audience to learn about art creation in Italy during Renaissance, the influence of Da Vinci's art at his time, and the formation of the Leonardeschi. The academic and educative exhibition, under the recognization of the National Committee for the Celebration of the 500th Anniversary of the Death of Leonardo da Vinci, becomes part of this year’s global commemoration.
The image of the art group Leonardeschi and its master Leonardo are relatively unfamiliar to many Chinese audiences. One of the original intentions of CAFA Art Museum holding this exhibition is to bring to China one research focus about Leonardo in current Western art history research field, so as to promote Chinese academic circles to further in-depth study into the Renaissance studies in the west and participate in its ongoing discussion. At the same time, it is of particular significance for the CAFA Art Museum to organize an exhibition focusing on the art teaching and mentoring relationship of the Renaissance giant Leonardo at the Central Academy of Fines Arts to which the art museum is affiliated and where the respect for teachers is advocated.
This exhibition presents a total of 30 pieces of paintings by Leonardo and his art group, including both the works of the students who learned directly from Leonardo and the followers who were influenced by him, covering the works made by the representatives of Leonardeschi such as Giampietrino, Oggiono, Salai and Luini.
The art group Leonardeschi is an important term and phenomenon in Western art history. There are only a few world-recognized masterpieces by Leonardo left, and many have been lost. Through the artists of Leonardeschi, we could gain more opportunities to understand Leonardo’s masterworks. In addition, more than 500 years ago in Europe, it was due to the artists of Leonardeschi, by following and re-creating their master’s works, that Leonardo’s artistic innovation and unique style were even more widely accepted and established, thus exerting a far-reaching impact. Although some works exhibited are still under academic discussion, through these works and the research of Leonardo and his art group, Leonardo’s image becomes more vivid, and we can understand more about the art ecology of Leonardo’s era, including art collection, art market, education, communication and so on, as well as the internal relations between Leonardo’s studio and the society, religion, economy and art development at that time.
Next year will be the 50th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Italy, and this exhibition comes at a right time. It is held at the CAFA Art Museum following the exhibitions at the Plazzo Cavour (9 February – 12 May 2019) in Torino, Italy, and at the Venezia Plazzo Giustinian Lolin of the Fondazinone Ugo E Olga Levi (31 May – 25 August 2019) in Venice. Zhang Zikang, Director of CAFA Art Museum, said: "Leonardo da Vinci's works collected by worldwide museums are attributed to him under meticulous research. In the course of history, there continues to emerge new works claimed to be Da Vinci's works. The life and works of people in art history have always been clarified with academic research, discussions and even disputes. Chinese scholars are able to participate in such discussions today. The exhibition displays Da Vinci and Leonardeschi's art styles with an open attitude, introduces the phenomenon of Da Vinci's art at his time, and provides an opportunity for diverse comments, researches and discussions in front of the paintings."
As Ettore Sequi, the Italian ambassador in China, addressed in his foreword for the exhibition: “…… During Leonardo’s stay in Milan, a whole generation of Renaissance artists visited his ‘studio’ to learn from him, which greatly enriched the production of oil paintings in those years.” The legacy of Leonardo inherited by these artists is of vital importance. Most of their works are still in private collections around the world and are rarely open to the public or experts. Given the above situation, The Institutions of Italy and China decided to organize this significant exhibition of “Leonardo and His Outstanding Circle”. This exhibition receives strong support from the Venezia 2000 Foundation and the Associazione Culturale no profit Sicilia Musei. CAFA Art Museum also thanks to the Italian Embassy, the Istituto Italiano di Cultura di Pechino in Beijing, Beijing Wisdom Art & Culture Co., Ltd., and Fondazinone Ugo E Olga Levi in Venice, for their great supports for the exhibition to open smoothly and the music elements to the visually-presented painting exhibition. During the exhibition, CAFA Art Museum will hold a number of academic lectures, the Renaissance – Ming Dynasty Concert and other public education activities to attract more audiences and trigger more open academic discussions and researches. CAFAM will also publish academic materials about the exhibits during the exhibition for researchers and the public's reference.
This year marks the 500th anniversary of the death of Leonardo da Vinci. As Leonardo is a worldwide cultural symbol, major art museums and galleries around the world are holding various commemorative exhibitions and special exhibitions relevant to Da Vinci's art. This exhibition, hosted by CAFA Art Museum in Beijing, China, starts from the unique perspective of Leonardo’s master-apprentice relationship with the Leonardeschi, opens a window for the audience to learn about art creation in Italy during Renaissance, the influence of Da Vinci's art at his time, and the formation of the Leonardeschi. The academic and educative exhibition, under the recognization of the National Committee for the Celebration of the 500th Anniversary of the Death of Leonardo da Vinci, becomes part of this year’s global commemoration.
The image of the art group Leonardeschi and its master Leonardo are relatively unfamiliar to many Chinese audiences. One of the original intentions of CAFA Art Museum holding this exhibition is to bring to China one research focus about Leonardo in current Western art history research field, so as to promote Chinese academic circles to further in-depth study into the Renaissance studies in the west and participate in its ongoing discussion. At the same time, it is of particular significance for the CAFA Art Museum to organize an exhibition focusing on the art teaching and mentoring relationship of the Renaissance giant Leonardo at the Central Academy of Fines Arts to which the art museum is affiliated and where the respect for teachers is advocated.
This exhibition presents a total of 30 pieces of paintings by Leonardo and his art group, including both the works of the students who learned directly from Leonardo and the followers who were influenced by him, covering the works made by the representatives of Leonardeschi such as Giampietrino, Oggiono, Salai and Luini.
The art group Leonardeschi is an important term and phenomenon in Western art history. There are only a few world-recognized masterpieces by Leonardo left, and many have been lost. Through the artists of Leonardeschi, we could gain more opportunities to understand Leonardo’s masterworks. In addition, more than 500 years ago in Europe, it was due to the artists of Leonardeschi, by following and re-creating their master’s works, that Leonardo’s artistic innovation and unique style were even more widely accepted and established, thus exerting a far-reaching impact. Although some works exhibited are still under academic discussion, through these works and the research of Leonardo and his art group, Leonardo’s image becomes more vivid, and we can understand more about the art ecology of Leonardo’s era, including art collection, art market, education, communication and so on, as well as the internal relations between Leonardo’s studio and the society, religion, economy and art development at that time.
Next year will be the 50th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Italy, and this exhibition comes at a right time. It is held at the CAFA Art Museum following the exhibitions at the Plazzo Cavour (9 February – 12 May 2019) in Torino, Italy, and at the Venezia Plazzo Giustinian Lolin of the Fondazinone Ugo E Olga Levi (31 May – 25 August 2019) in Venice. Zhang Zikang, Director of CAFA Art Museum, said: "Leonardo da Vinci's works collected by worldwide museums are attributed to him under meticulous research. In the course of history, there continues to emerge new works claimed to be Da Vinci's works. The life and works of people in art history have always been clarified with academic research, discussions and even disputes. Chinese scholars are able to participate in such discussions today. The exhibition displays Da Vinci and Leonardeschi's art styles with an open attitude, introduces the phenomenon of Da Vinci's art at his time, and provides an opportunity for diverse comments, researches and discussions in front of the paintings."
As Ettore Sequi, the Italian ambassador in China, addressed in his foreword for the exhibition: “…… During Leonardo’s stay in Milan, a whole generation of Renaissance artists visited his ‘studio’ to learn from him, which greatly enriched the production of oil paintings in those years.” The legacy of Leonardo inherited by these artists is of vital importance. Most of their works are still in private collections around the world and are rarely open to the public or experts. Given the above situation, The Institutions of Italy and China decided to organize this significant exhibition of “Leonardo and His Outstanding Circle”. This exhibition receives strong support from the Venezia 2000 Foundation and the Associazione Culturale no profit Sicilia Musei. CAFA Art Museum also thanks to the Italian Embassy, the Istituto Italiano di Cultura di Pechino in Beijing, Beijing Wisdom Art & Culture Co., Ltd., and Fondazinone Ugo E Olga Levi in Venice, for their great supports for the exhibition to open smoothly and the music elements to the visually-presented painting exhibition. During the exhibition, CAFA Art Museum will hold a number of academic lectures, the Renaissance – Ming Dynasty Concert and other public education activities to attract more audiences and trigger more open academic discussions and researches. CAFAM will also publish academic materials about the exhibits during the exhibition for researchers and the public's reference.
2019-09-10
