[Lee Jong-gil's Film Reading] The Genius of the Renaissance Who Walked onto the Screen

CGV Louvre Museum Special Exhibition 'Night at the Louvre: Leonardo da Vinci'
Illuminating da Vinci's Life Through the Science of Painting... Light, Darkness, Depth, Freedom, Science, Life
"He Was Not Unfocused but Painting Was Always Part of His Life"

The Louvre Museum held the "Leonardo da Vinci Exhibition" for four months from October 24 last year in the Napoleon Hall located under the Pyramid.

Leonardo da Vinci (1452?1519) was a Renaissance man. He was well-versed in life, art, and scholarship. Not only did he leave masterpieces such as the "Mona Lisa" and "The Last Supper," but he also demonstrated remarkable talents in various fields, including the creation of explosives, catapults, and concepts for flying machines.

This was part of his effort to expand the world of painting. He did not limit painting to a strict imitation of nature. Instead, he recognized it as an art born from the principles of mathematics and science. With a fluid perspective, he analyzed human emotions and approached a wondrous new world.

The Louvre Museum in Paris, France, focused on highlighting the footsteps of this giant. From October 24 last year, it held the "Leonardo da Vinci Exhibition" for four months. It displayed 162 works that have been praised even after 500 years in the Napoleon Hall located beneath the Louvre Pyramid. These were genuine pieces borrowed from the British Royal Family, the Vatican, the British Museum, and others.

The exhibition ended successfully. So many visitors flocked that the Louvre Museum accepted timed reservations for the first time. However, most could not fully enjoy the pleasure of appreciation because they were swept away by the crowd and could not concentrate.

The documentary film "Louvre Museum Special Exhibition: Night at the Louvre Leonardo da Vinci," released on the 16th at 20 CGV locations nationwide, is an excellent opportunity to soothe that regret. It calmly explores every corner of the Napoleon Hall, examining da Vinci’s paintings, drawings, sculptures, and research notebooks. With detailed commentary from curators Vincent Delieuvin and Louis Frank, who prepared the special exhibition for 10 years, it explains da Vinci’s worldview in an easy-to-understand manner.

Director Pierre-Hubert Martin looks back on da Vinci’s life through the science of painting. Da Vinci once said, "Do not trust artists who try to be interpreters between nature and man by imagination alone." He emphasized theory verification through various experiments. In the case of portraits, he did not stop at depicting the model. He strove to reveal more than the sum of individual lines with similarities.

"Night at the Louvre Leonardo da Vinci" introduces these various efforts in four sequences: light, darkness, three-dimensionality and freedom, science, and life. Each theme naturally connects within da Vinci’s life. The "Annunciation" and "Virgin of the Rocks" are representative examples. In the former, the angel Gabriel kneels and raises three fingers. The gesture signifies grace. The seated Virgin slightly raises her left hand in surprise at the news of her conception.

The figures are depicted in detail down to the folds of their clothes. This is the result of countless drawing studies. By using appropriate shading to create a sense of space, the two figures are brought to life. There are also flaws. The proportions of the Virgin’s right and left arms do not match. The movement and gaze are somewhat unnatural. Da Vinci knew this but could not fix it because he could only paint over while the painting was drying.

'The Virgin of the Rocks' is a work Leonardo da Vinci first created in Milan. The Virgin, John, an angel, and Jesus are arranged in a typical pyramidal composition at the center of the canvas.

He rejected conventional working methods. He focused on expressing natural movement and immersed himself in capturing vivid emotions. The work created this way is the "Virgin of the Rocks." The Virgin sits with the infant Jesus on her lap, sharing a connection. At first glance, it seems like a happy moment between mother and child. However, the flower branch Jesus holds in his right hand hints at his fate to be crucified.

Da Vinci painted the moment when the Virgin’s emotions change in her eyes. It is a sadness slowly spreading beneath a gentle smile. Jesus also shows ambivalence as if foreseeing his harsh fate. Director Martin finds the secret of this subtle emotion through infrared reflectography. There are traces of multiple corrections. In the underdrawing, the two figures are not close but somewhat apart. Their hands are much smaller.

Delieuvin points out another example, "Saint Jerome," saying, "The free spirit of painting is expressed." This work also shows clear signs of multiple corrections, with fingerprints visible in places. However, the sternocleidomastoid muscle from the neck to the shoulder is depicted inaccurately. At that time, da Vinci did not know anatomy well. He studied the body structure later and painted over the drawing.

Delieuvin says, "For da Vinci, painting was an intellectual reflection," and "everything was science for painting." Some criticize that many of his works were left unfinished and speculate that da Vinci might have been lazy. However, "Night at the Louvre Leonardo da Vinci" insists, "It was not that he could not focus on one field, but painting was always part of his life," and "it was an important process that breathed life into his paintings."

The "Mona Lisa," familiar to us, is the result of this culmination. It shows the most beautiful smile in the world. The subtle expression is so precise and solid that it gives the illusion of being alive and moving. It evokes not only humanity but also a sense of sanctity. As Giorgio Vasari (1511?1574), who wrote the first biography of da Vinci, summarized, it is the essence of painting achieved through science.

"Sometimes we see nature pour heavenly energy onto one person, bestowing tremendous talent. Such overwhelming supernatural grace may concentrate on one person, giving them beauty, loveliness, and artistic talent all at once. Such a person’s work is so sacred that many dare not raise their heads, and only they shine brightly alone. Moreover, what they produce is like something made by God’s hand, making it hard to believe it was made by human hands. Leonardo da Vinci is exactly such a person."