Leonardo da Vinci: The Flights of the Mind
AuthorCharles Nicholl
CountryUnited States
PublisherViking Adult
Publication date
18 November 2004
Media typePrint (Hardcover and Paperback)
Pages640 (Hardcover)
ISBN0-670-03345-6 (Hardcover)
OCLC56334378
709/.2 B 22
LC ClassN6923.L33 N52 2004

Leonardo da Vinci: Flights of the Mind is a 2004 biography of Leonardo da Vinci by Charles Nicholl.

Description

The book researches the life of Leonardo da Vinci in Tuscane and explores the reasons of his historic success.[1][2] The author's main observation is that most of Leonardo's work was unfinished. Through a thorough research, the author dismisses most of the romanticized facts about da Vinci and concludes that a lot is unknown about the genius inventor.[3] Leonardo is described as an engineer obsessed with natural designs.[4] Washington Post writer Alexander Nagel criticized Nicholl's technical analysis of the inventor's paintings that lack insight and misses an opportunity to push deeper into the mind of Leonardo.[5]

The author retranslates many of Leonardo's mirrorscript writings.[6] Some guesswork is admittedly thrown in this biography:[2] an old woman visiting Leonardo in 1493 becomes his mother; Freudian concepts are used to explain his probable homosexuality (Joseph missing from his representations of the Holy Family); His stay in jail is linked to his plans to reverse engineer locks...[7] The author also argues that Leonardo's obsession with flying devices comes from his alchemical quest for a levitation technology.[5]

David Gelernter criticized his interpretations around the hypothetical encounter of Michelangelo and Leonardo.[4]

The release of Leonardo da Vinci: Flights of the Mind coincided with the release of another Leonardo biography, Leonardo by Martin Kemp.[8]

Release details

  • 2004, United States, Viking Adult ISBN 0-670-03345-6, Pub date 18 November 2004, Hardcover
  • 2005, United States, Penguin ISBN 0-14-303612-2, 29 November 2005, Paperback

References

  1. ↑ "Review of Leonardo da Vinci Flights Of The Mind". Kirkus Reviews. October 1, 2004.
  2. 1 2 Spalding, Frances (October 29, 2004). "Leonardo da Vinci: the Flights of the Mind by Charles Nicholl". The Independent. London. Retrieved May 7, 2010.
  3. ↑ Andreae, Christopher (December 21, 2004). "Leonardo was a one-man corporation of brilliant ideas But with so many plans, how could he finish anything?". Christian Science Monitor.
  4. 1 2 Gelernter, David (December 5, 2004). "The da Vinci Mode". The New York Times Book Review.
  5. 1 2 Nagel, Alexander (November 28, 2004). "Everything Is Illuminated". The Washington Post.
  6. ↑ Selzman, Lisa Jennifer (January 23, 2005). "Da Vinci decoded / Charles Nicholl's gloriously rendered portrait is rich in detail and a warm piece of storytelling". Houston Chronicle: 16.
  7. ↑ Rees, Jasper (Oct 10, 2004). "A slippery genius". The Daily Telegraph. London.
  8. ↑ Gopnik, Adam (January 17, 2005). "Renaissance Man The life of Leonardo". The New Yorker.
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