Giorgio Vasari's Lives of the Most Excellent Painters, Sculptors, and
Architects (1550 and 1568) is a classic of cultural history. In his
monumental assembly of artists' lives, no life is more vivid than that
of Leonardo da Vinci, a near-contemporary of Vasari. Illustrated with
the works of art discussed by Vasari, and including a selection of Da
Vinci's studies of science and technology, The Life of Leonardo da
Vinci paints an intriguing picture of the progress of art in the hands
of the master. Succinct notes also provide new insights in light of
modern knowledge of Da Vinci's career.
This beautiful gift edition offers a literary translation by eminent
scholar Martin Kemp that respects the sixteenth-century Italian,
transposing Vasari's vocabulary into its modern equivalent. Translated
in partnership with Lucy Russell, the text will be the first to
integrate the 1550 edition and the expanded version of 1568. This
fascinating and accessible read coincides with the five hundredth
anniversary of Da Vinci's death.