Daily Art Quote

"Painting is poetry that is seen rather than felt, 

and poetry is painting that is felt rather than seen."

~ Leonardo da Vinci

Leonardo da Vinci was truly a master in art, philosophy, and mathematics.  With today's quote in mind, I went searching for some of his poetry - online.  Alas, I was unable to find any, although there were many references that I found stating that he did, in fact, write poetry.  

So, I hunted some more.  

I was able to find another very interesting quote which somewhat relates to today's Daily Art Quote.  Here it is:

(the above quote was found at the website: http://home.mindspring.com/~chadwick15/_wsn/Conversation.html

I also found a website that had links to download one of his books called "The Book on Painting", which had been translated and published in 1883.  In the preface it talks about the fact that - for whatever reason (it's mysterious)-  Leonardo da Vinci wrote the pages of this book backwards, and used many shorthand symbols for various words/sounds.  So, it sounds like translating his manuscripts for this book (and perhaps ALL of his writing) was a painstakingly difficult process.  However, thanks to their effort - it WAS translated, and can be read at the link below. On the right side of the webpage is a list of formats to choose from.   I clicked on the 2nd one - a download for the B/W PDF (black & white pdf version).  Being as he lived in the 15th & 16th centuries, it is definitely in the public domain by now!  lol  Even this translated book is in the public domain now.  So - don't hesitate to download yourself a copy!  There are some fascinating things written here - especially if you are interested in perspective, how the eyes see in perspective, and other things - that I haven't had a chance to look at yet.  I'm planning to read the whole thing - eventually. It's over 500 pages.

link to page where you can download a pdf of "The Book on Painting" by Leonardo da Vinci

Here is an excerpt that I found interesting:

As you can see from the snippet above, his writing is on the left side, with the english translation on the right.

Have an Artful Day!

Daily Art Quote #3 (by Winston Churchill)

Daily Art Quote #2 (by Louise Nevelson)

Daily Art Quote #1 (by Pablo Picasso)