artfirstprimo experiencing Leonardo da Vinci at the Court of Milan

On the morning of 9th November I made my way to a private early morning view of the event the year if not of the decade.  The event was, as you've probably guessed by now, Leonardo at the Court of Milan, the exhibition opening later on today at the National Gallery here in London.  Indeed at 09:00 that very morning, yours truly artfirstprimo was one of the few to enter the exhibition before the crowds were let in at 10:00

As I walked around this unprecedented exhibition, which marks a once in a lifetime opportunity to see so many of Leonardo's works in one place I was aware that this is indeed an historic occasion, and on this occasion that curator of this exhibition is on hand to take myself and the rest of the National Gallery staff around the exhibition giving us his own commentary on the life of Leonardo and the paintings in the exhibition.

As so Luke Syson the curator of the Leonardo exhibition completed giving his talk to this private audience of which felt like it consisted of almost the entire staff of the National Gallery.  So it was now it is time to look around and see the work of the Master myself.

Among the highlights of this exhibition of Leonardo's time at the Sforza Court of Milan is the Louvre version of the Madonna of the Rocks. This is truly of the real scoops for the National Gallery, getting the Louvre to part with this masterpiece.  It hangs facing the National Gallery's own version; Luke Syson, curator of the exhibition says that this is possibly the first and the last time these two great masterpieces will hang together.  Also here to view is the Madonna Litta, previously thought, until very recently, to be by a pupil of Leonardo's Giovanni Antonio Boltraffio, indeed The Madonna Litta, c.1481-97, was also thought to be collaboration between Leonardo and said pupil. However, in this exhibition it has been re-attributed to being solely by the hand of Leonardo.  And as if this revelation isn't enough, the Leonardo exhibition also has the newly attributed Christ as Salvator Mundi painting on display in London also for the first time; it too was miss-attributed as being by a follower of Leonardo’s pupil Giovanni Antonio Boltraffio at which time it was valued at £48.00, its value has subsequently increased somewhat.

After three hours in the National Gallery’s lower exhibition rooms of the Sainsbury Wing being mesmerised by this exhibition I emerged into the daylight and was greeted by an enormous queue stretching out of the door of the National Gallery, along Jubilee Walk and around to the back of the building, little did I know at this time that this would be the shape of things to come for the duration of this historic exhibition. Everywhere one turns in this exhibition there is a delight for the eye that verges on overwhelming the visual senses, but if one is to be overwhelmed there can be no better reason.