There's a really cool exhibit at the Martin Luthor King Jr. Library in Washington DC going on right now. On display in the library's basement are 12 original sketches by Leonardo Da Vinci.
You know the guy who painted "The Mona Lisa" and "The Last Supper". There's a fun conspiracy theory book and movie about the guy that came out nearly two decades ago (geez has it really been that long?). That Leonardo Da Vinci.
It's the first time these drawings have ever been in the United States.
This exhibit is short, only 90 days, and then the drawings have to go back to Italy and be placed in storage for three years. That's right, these drawings are super delicate and can only be out of storage every three years for a period of 90 days total. So if you want to see them in person, you've got to get to Washington DC by August 20th, 2023.
Thankfully, like many things in DC, this exhibit is 100% free. Plenty of libraries offer special exhibits for anyone who wanders in - you don't need a library card to enter. The New York City Library had several special rooms (though I'd only ever seen one in use) for exhibits on different authors or works of literature. The Martin Luthor King Jr. Library is no exception. Included in the exhibits is one on Black Feminism and Go Go (which was invented in DC).
My journey to see the Leonardo Da Vinci started in June, when an article popped up on one of my social media feeds as something to do in DC. I was super excited! I'd recently come across several documentaries on Da Vinci, including some on him being a queer icon (this is actually historically plausible and there is evidence of it in court records - three guesses why).
Already, Da Vinci was starting to sound punk...at least in the literary subgenre sense that my writer friends have cultivated. I don't know if the whole punk subculture would accept him as one of their own.
The next step in my journey was to actually go do the exhibit. I picked a really hot day during the July 4th extended holiday weekend. Not only had I hoped to see the exhibit, but there was a special showing of Da Vinci recreated works at the National Gallery of Art's Library. It seemed like the perfect way to spend the day.
Except that when I arrived at the library, it was closed. There was a problem with some of the internal workings at the library and they had to fix it quickly. Thus, I was foiled in the main part of my quest.
But since this was a quest, that meant that there could (and would) be side quests.
I headed over to the eastern building of the National Gallery of Art. It was about a 20 minute walk in the hot and steaming sun. Washington DC is built over a swamp and the summer climate reflects that. I was sweating enough to fill a bucket by the time I got to the museum and when I arrived, the main floor was filled with people. The first Saturday of the month is when the museum hosts an activity for patrons, but is mostly geared towards kids (not that that's ever stopped me from joining in). It wasn't Da Vinci related. The activity was drawing fireworks over a DC cityscape.
My objective lay in a corner of the museum not easily seen from the entrance. In fact, despite having gone to this museum my whole life, I'd never been in this area or even knew about it.
The library at the museum is small, but held enough room for a few fun experiments and games for kids to do that related to Da Vinci's scientific side of his work. One area had enlarged photos of different people from Da Vinci's work "The Last Supper". It surrounded a table filled with reference books explaining Da Vinci's paintings.
Another set of tables was set up with museum library employees with more books, but these books were a little different. I really should have taken some pictures because these books were all recreations of Da Vinci's personal journals and notebooks. Each were made to look like they might have just recently been held by the artist with ink spots, artificial aging, and and even finger prints. According to the librarian I spoke with, each was accurate to it's original.
This is where I learned how steampunk Leonardo Da Vinci thought about his experimental drawings. There were tons of gears and pipes that look like sketches out of a patent from the Industrial Revolution or a Miyazaki movie (not all, but many of his movies have a steampunk aesthetic like Castle in the Sky, Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind, and Howl's Moving Castle). I was especially intrigued by his telescope designs that wouldn't be invented for another hundred years and the intricate geometric three dimensional like shapes he did as illustrations for a friend's book.
It was also here, that I learned more about Da Vinci's quirks such as his preference for mirror writing (where you can only read what is written by looking in a mirror) and had it confirmed that Da Vinci was indeed queer (the librarian went on a passionate speech about the subject and evidence available). Additionally, the fact that Da Vinci's drawings were so meticulous in a time when paper wasn't as plentiful as it is today. Even his sketches had a fine, confident ink stroke to them that I can only dream of having.
Side quest complete, I spent the rest of the day exploring the (relatively) recently reopened eastern wing on the museum before going to the folklife festival on the Mall. My initial quest objective might not have been completed, but I still had a great day and learned a lot.
This week, I finally did make it to the Martin Luthor King Jr. Library.
My friend and I were already planning a trip into the city to see the all female (cis and transgender women) and non-binary casting of 1776 (you can read about that experience here). My friend wasn't having the best week and I wanted to make it a fun time for her.
Originally, I had hoped we'd go to the library before the play and have lunch in Chinatown. However, timing wasn't on our side and we ended up going straight to the Kennedy Center - a new side quest was unlocked, though it had nothing to do with Da Vinci. We ended up taking a free tour of the Kennedy Center (hey look another free thing to do in DC) and learning about the many donations and art pieces from other countries. Coincidently, Italy had the biggest contribution to the Kennedy Center with their donation of all of the white marble that makes up the building.
One thing I've learned from all this is that Italy knows how to treat the arts.
After the play, my friend and I braved DC rush hour to visit the museum. The ladies at the National Art Gallery said that going after work was actually a great time to go, since there shouldn't be much of a wait to get in. We arrived and checked in right away. The lady at the desk waved us downstairs and the Italian representative checked us in.
The room with the 12 sketches was dark, with only the illuminated drawings. There was an interactive portion with QR codes that allowed you to listen to an explanation as well. I simply enjoyed looking at the sketches, especially the perpetual motion machine.
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| The perpetual motion machine in question. |
Da Vinci was certainly a man ahead of his time. He had ideas for drills, indoor plumbing, and studies of fountains. His notes, in his famous mirror writing, were all over the pages - which were distinct from other people's notes which appeared as standard Italian writing.
After viewing the drawings, my quest was complete.
Or so I thought.
As my friend and I were about the leave the exhibit, the Italian curator mentioned that there was a back room with a solar clock built based on Da Vinci's designs. It was a short, but no less cool final side quest.
Dolce & Gabbana were one of the sponsors of the exhibit and therefore wanted to show off their watches. They had a few displays of their fancy wrist watches, but the really cool piece they provided was the tall solar clock.
It wasn't moving when my friend and I saw it, but I could see how it would work. It included time keeping for seconds, minutes, and hours as any clock does, but also included the month and zodiac sun sign.
The side quest was short, but rounded out my journey just in time to enjoy dinner in Chinatown (or at least what passes as Chinatown in DC).
Though I might
If you'd like to see the exhibit, the Martin Luthor King Jr. Library is open 7 days a week, some days as late as 9:00PM. It's short enough for people to check if out after work and miss the worst of rush hour traffic. I learned a lot, including how steampunk Da Vinci was, which is why I think we can just call him Leo from now on. It's much more punk than the formal Leonardo.
Until next week.
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Really interesting! Love that solar clock.
ReplyDeleteMary G. from art club