Book Review: This is Leonardo da Vinci

Here's another delightful book from the artists series published by Laurence King Publishers. The artist series looks at painters from the past and so far I've read books on Frank Lloyd Wright, Francis Bacon, Henri Matisse, Jackson Pollock and Dali.

The book's written by Joost Keizer with illustrations from Christina Christoforou.

With only 80 pages, this book can be read in one sitting. There are many books written about Leonardo Da Vinci and this is one of the more accessible ones. Text usually runs for a page with a huge accompanying illustration.

The story of Leonardo Da Vinci's life is interesting. I didn't know that he was an illegitimate son and because of that he wasn't able to pursue his father's career as a notary. As such, he dabble in other activities and eventually became a painter. He has many interests, such as in engineering and anatomy. The book talks more about his art training under Verrocchio, his career, and how he became the masterful painter and polymath that we know today.

The illustrations by Christina Christoforou are beautiful. They look like they were drawn with ballpoint and coloured pencils. I like the illustration style.

My only quibble of the book is some of the original paintings were reproduced a bit too dark. Maybe originals really do look like that but they would certainly look better a bit brighter.

Overall, it's a nice book to check out.

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This review copy is provided by book seller and distributor APD Singapore (website | facebook). You can get the book from them and major bookstores in Southeast Asia.

This is Leonardo da Vinci is available at Amazon (US | CA | UK | DE | FR | IT | ES | JP | CN)

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