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PEOPLE & ARTS Wednesday 23 OctOber 2019
Louvre exhibit acclaims Da Vinci, 500 years after his death

By CLAIRE PARKER only days before the exhib-
Associated Press it's opening.
PARIS (AP) — Much about Italian heritage group Our
Leonardo Da Vinci remains Italy tried to block the loan,
an enigma: the smile of the saying the drawing was
"Mona Lisa"; why the world's too fragile to be moved.
most famous painter left so An Italian court originally
many works unfinished; and suspended the loan be-
more recently, who bought fore ruling last week that it
the contentious "Salvator could travel to France for
Mundi." eight weeks. In exchange,
A new exhibit at the Lou- the Louvre will lend several
vre, however, opening works by Raphael to Rome
Thursday and marking the next year.
500th anniversary of the The dispute fanned the
Italian master's death, tries flames of a broader de-
to sketch out as complete bate about Da Vinci's leg-
a picture of the artist and acy and Italian national
thinker as possible. identity.
Drawing from the Lou- "A Leonardo Da Vinci ex-
vre's permanent collection hibit is very difficult to do,
and institutions around the since Da Vinci has become
world, the exhibit brings The Incredulity of Saint Thomas by Leonardo da Vinci during a visit at the Louvre museum Sunday, a symbol," Delieuvin said,
together some 160 works. Oct. 20, 2019 in Paris. calling it "natural" that some
They include Da Vinci mas- Associated Press museums are reluctant to
terpieces, dozens of stud- reserve tickets online in With a whole room devot- pleted paintings will be on lend pieces from their col-
ies and scientific sketches, advance, and the Louvre ed to his scientific pursuits, it display, including "La Belle lections.
and pieces by other artists said it has already pre-sold seeks to capture the quest Ferronniere" and "The Virgin "I assure everyone that the
in Da Vinci's orbit. Visitors 220,000 tickets as of Mon- for knowledge and per- and Child with Saint Anne." French have never appro-
can also experience a vir- day morning. fection of a man Delieuvin The "Mona Lisa" will remain priated Leonardo Da Vin-
tual reality portion of the More than 10 years in the called "a universal genius." in its case, upstairs. Visitors ci," he said. "Leonardo is a
exhibit that delves into the making, the project began "Leonardo Da Vinci, he will be able to see "Portrait genius who is evidently Ital-
story behind the "Mona when Louis Frank, the exhib- is one of those rare men, of a Musician" on loan from ian, he was entirely formed
Lisa." it's other curator, translated those personalities who fas- the Vatican and "Benois in Italy, and he would not
"We wished, in order to pay a Renaissance-era Da Vin- cinate us, because he was Madonna" from St. Peters- have become Leonardo
homage to the artist, to be ci biography to round out universal," Delieuvin said. burg, among other works Da Vinci in France."
able to show the entirety existing knowledge about "He had an interest in all as- the Louvre borrowed for Another, still-absent piece
of Leonardo Da Vinci's ca- the painter's life. That bio- pects of nature, we all see the occasion. has also drawn significant
reer and his development graphical emphasis is evi- ourselves in his personality." Some pieces proved more attention. The Louvre put
and to explain, ultimately, dent in the exhibit's design, "Mathematicians, geom- difficult to obtain. The "Vit- out a call for the "Salvator
the sense of his life," curator which traces the artist's tra- etry specialists, doctors, art- ruvian Man," Da Vinci's fa- Mundi" but has yet to re-
Vincent Delieuvin told The jectory from his apprentice- ists, everyone sees a part of mous drawing of the ideally ceive the painting, which
Associated Press. ship with Florentine sculptor themselves in Leonardo," proportioned male figure, sold to an anonymous buy-
The exhibit runs through Andrea del Verocchio to he added. arrived in France from Ven- er for a record-breaking
Feb. 24, 2020. Visitors must his death in France in 1519. Several of Da Vinci's com- ice's Accademia Gallery $450 million in 2017.q

Pulitzer winner Weingarten tells story of "One Day"

By MICHAEL HILL 28, 1986. "One Day: The Ex- who experienced a brush tween a schmendrick and
Associated Press traordinary Story of an Or- with fate that day. Think of a tool."
"One Day: The Extraordi- dinary 24 Hours in America" it as a book of non-fiction In one sense, this is book is
nary Story of an Ordinary tells the story of that day, short stories. like the proverbial box of
24 Hours in America," Blue from urgent early morning Weingarten is an extraor- chocolates. Some stories
Rider Press, by Gene Wein- preparations for a heart dinary reporter who mines are better than others. The
garten transplant in Charlottes- vivid details from 33 years story of a murderer's heart
A college student is found ville, Virginia, to the Grate- ago. Readers experience being transplanted hours
strangled beneath a ful Dead jamming around what people said, how after his death is gripping
bridge, a baby is grievously midnight in Oakland, Cali- they moved, what they and haunting. The tale of
burned in a house fire, New fornia. thought. He claims to have a girl who grew up to be a
York City Mayor Ed Koch is Why that particular day? conducted more than 500 tell-all blogger is neither.
heckled in a church, Rus- The year, month and date interviews for this book, and But the book adds up to
sian emigres gather at an were on pieces of paper it shows. something greater than the
airport to return home and that were, literally, picked The two-time Pulitzer Prize individual stories.
an instant replay review out of a hat. Weingarten winner for feature writing People on that long-ago
at a Rams-Redskins game admits the book idea is a can turn a phrase, too. winter day experienced This cover image released
stretches on for excruciat- stunt but professes his love Football announcer John anger, pain, tension, hap- by Blue Rider Press shows
ing minutes. for stunts that tell unexpect- Madden "looked as though piness, doubt, satisfac- "One Day: The Extraordinary
The incidents are uncon- ed truths. Weingarten seeks he had sent his clothes to tion and hope. At his best, Story of an Ordinary 24
nected but for the fact to capture "the soul" of the the rumplers." Incompetent Weingarten taps into the Hours in America," by Gene
that they all happened on day through a series of sto- spy Clayton Lonetree is de- wonder of what it is to be Weingarten.
a single day: Sunday, Dec. ries about ordinary people scribed as "somewhere be- alive.q Associated Press