Page 279 - Art In The Age Of Exploration (Great Section on Chinese Art Ming Dynasty)

emphasize the structural solidity of the pose. Leonardo's project for an equestrian monument to the body, corresponds to Alberti's recommenda-
Leonardo's notes on the human figure, intended Francesco Sforza. The drawings are generally tion in De pictura (para. 36).
for his treatise on painting, emphasize that every characterized by thin, broken contours and pro- Leonardo considerably extends Vitruvius' gen-
part of a figure should be in keeping with every portional divisions that have been laid out free- eral prescriptions by taking detailed measure-
other part and with the total character of the hand rather than with ruler or compasses. The ments of even such small features as the space
person represented: "Thus if a man has a thick three notes on the present drawing, like many between the bottom of the nose and the mouth,
and short figure he will be the same in all his others on the Windsor proportion studies, are which he then relates to adjacent and remote parts
limbs, that is to say with short and thick arms, marked with the marginal symbol of a slashed of the body (Panofsky 1957). He also extends
wide and thick hands, and short fingers with circle, which indicates that they have been tran- Vitruvius' program—perhaps following Alberti in
joints in the prescribed manner, and so on with scribed elsewhere, probably by Leonardo's pupil, De statua—beyond the straightforward measure-
all the rest of the parts. I intend to say the same Francesco Melzi, although they do not appear in ment of the static body. He explores what happens
about plants and animals universally, reducing Melzi's surviving compilation, the Codex Urbinas to the proportions of the whole and of the parts
or increasing them proportionately according to (the Trattato della pittura). Nor is this drawing when the body is in different positions, exhibiting
their diminution or increase in size" (Kemp 1989, among those copied (either directly from the orig- his characteristic concern with the nature and
302). "Muscular men have thick bones and are inals or from Melzi's transcriptions) by Carlo consequences of motion. Accordingly he demon-
short and thick and have a dearth of fat, because Urbino da Crema into the Codex Huygens (Panof- strates that the extrusion of the elbow when the
the muscles, through their growth, are com- sky 1940). It may have been Leonardo's original arm is bent occasions different proportional ratios
pressed together, and the fat that would otherwise notebook or a transcribed version of it that was than those related to the straight arm. In the
be interposed between them cannot find any recorded in Lomazzo's Idea del tempio della pit- present drawing Leonardo is concerned to define
room" (Kemp 1989, 338). tura in 1590 (Lomazzo 1974). the changed proportional relationships when a
The note on this drawing, which has been The primary source for Leonardo's ideas was man kneels or sits: "If a man kneels down he will
translated as "Francesco sounds sinister (?)," may the section on human proportions in the treatise lose a quarter of his height.
have no connection with the drawing. However, it on architecture by the ancient Roman author, "When a man kneels down with his hands
might be interpreted as "Francesco sinistre musi- Vitruvius, whose image of a man inscribed within in front of his breasts, the navel will be at the
cian" and refer to the model. M.K. a square and a circle Leonardo adapted in the midpoint of his height and likewise the points
famous drawing in Venice (cat. 175). He may also of his elbows.
have drawn inspiration from Alberti's treatises "The midpoint of the seated man, that is to say
and the writings of Francesco di Giorgio, whom he from the seat to the top of the head, will be just
met in 1490 if not earlier. The standing figure below the breasts and below the shoulders. This
with arms outstretched in the present study is in seated part, that is to say, from the seat to above
177 the "Vitruvian" pose, which is also illustrated by the head, will be more than half the height of the
Francesco di Giorgio, while one of Leonardo's basic man by the amount of the length and breadth of
Leonardo da Vinci modules, based on head height as one eighth of the testicles" (Kemp 1989, 328). M.K.
Florentine, 1452-1519
STUDIES IN HUMAN PROPORTION
c. 1492
pen and brown ink on paper
15.9x22.6(61/4 x 8 1/2)
inscribed with notes on human proportion
references: Panofsky 1940; Popham 1946, 224;
Panofsky 1957; Clark and Pedretti 1965-1969,
1913 2r; Richter 1970/1977, 332; Lomazzo 1974;
Keele and Pedretti 1979-1980, 2?r; Kemp 1989, 328;
London 1989, 91
Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth n, Royal Library,
Windsor Castle

Leonardo's most sustained attempts to work out
a comprehensive system of proportions for large
and small features of the human body appear to
have been made around 1488-1494. The present
drawing (Windsor 19132^ belongs to a series
at Windsor, which includes nos. 12304^ 19129^
I9i3or-v, I9i3ir-v, 19133^ 19134-19135^
19136-19139^ and 19140^ of which at least four
(this drawing and 12304, 19130, and 19131) orig-
inated from the same notebook. The series is
closely related to studies in Manuscripts A
(particularly 63 r) and B (2v), which were com-
piled in and before 1492. The verso of 12304 con-
tains related studies of the proportions of a horse,
made during the early 14905 in connection with

2/8 CIRCA 1492