Issued May 2019
Leonardo’s Legacy: Francesco Melzi and the Leonardeschi
23 May – 23 June 2019
Room 12
Admission free
The National Gallery is marking the 500th anniversary of Leonardo da Vinci’s death with a display presenting the exceptional loan of the recently restored 'Flora' by Francesco Melzi from the State Hermitage Museum, St Petersburg.
The painting is being displayed alongside ten other key works by the so-called ‘Leonardeschi’ from the National Gallery Collection in a free, month-long display in Room 12. This is the first time the painting has been seen in the UK and the first time it has been seen outside of Russia since its restoration.
Francesco Melzi (1493–1570) was a wealthy gentleman of Milan, and the favoured assistant and companion to Leonardo in his final years. As his primary heir, he was largely responsible for preserving Leonardo’s notebooks and drawings for posterity.
Though Leonardo’s writings and inventions were not given due recognition for centuries, the legacy of his painting style was immediate and substantial. The term ‘Leonardeschi’ has since been used to identify artists centred in Milan who were taught by or associated with Leonardo, or whose work bears his influence.
This exquisite painting by Francesco Melzi depicts Flora, the goddess of springtime and flowers, seated in a leafy grotto sprouting with fern and ivy. Flora’s exposed breast and the way she tenderly inspects a sprig of aquilegia – a symbol of fertility – emphasise her role as ‘mother of flowers’. On her lap she caresses a spray of jasmine, signifying purity, beside anemones representing rebirth.
Recent restoration undertaken by the State Hermitage Museum has uncovered the picture’s true colours, including the powerful ultramarine blue; and hidden details have been revealed, such as the flowers growing from the walls of the dimly lit grotto. Infrared reflectography has also shown that Melzi ensured anatomical correctness by modelling Flora’s naked figure before adding her clothing.
The painting reflects the influence of Melzi’s teacher, Leonardo, to whom it was attributed at the time of its acquisition from the Dutch Royal collection in 1850. The female facial type with its downcast look is characteristic of Leonardo’s Milanese style, as is the mastery of subtle modulations of tone, known as ‘sfumato’. Melzi has taken Leonardo’s meticulous approach to painting plants and also replicates the complex hair-styling he uses in other portraits.
Director of the National Gallery, Dr Gabriele Finaldil says,
“We are delighted to be able to mark the 500th anniversary of Leonardo da Vinci’s death with a display presenting the exceptional loan of the recently restored ‘Flora’ by Francesco Melzi .The State Hermitage Museum has long-standing and close ties to the National Gallery and this Room 12 display is a superb example of international museums working together.”
Professor Piotrovsky, Director of the State Hermitage Museum, St. Petersburg,says,
“We are excited to have loaned ‘Flora’ by Francesco Melzi to the National Gallery and to see her as the central focus of this fascinating display which explores the work of Leonardo’s closest friends and disciples. This represents the first time that ‘Flora’ has been seen outside of Russia since it was restored by Maria Shulepova, revealing details and rich colouring which had been lost for decades under layers of old varnish. We hope that visitors in London will enjoy seeing this rare masterpiece by Leonardo’s favourite pupil, and we are pleased to further strengthen our long and valued friendship with the National Gallery.”
Two works by Leonardo – The Virgin of the Rocks and The Burlington House Cartoon – can be seen in Gallery 66 of the National Gallery.
MEDIA OPPORTUNITY
There is an opportunity for journalists, photographers and film crews to visit 'Leonardo’s Legacy: Francesco Melzi and the Leonardeschi' on THURSDAY 23 MAY 2019, 9–10am.
Available for interviews – Dr Gabriele Finaldi, Director of the National Gallery and Mikhail Piotrovsky, Director State Hermitage Museum, St Petersburg.
Please RSVP to press@ng-london.org.uk if you wish to attend.
Entry is via the Portico Entrance.
NOTES TO EDITORS
National Gallery works featured in Leonardo’s Legacy: Francesco Melzi and the Leonardeschi.
- An Angel in Green with a Vielle - Associate of Leonardo da Vinci (Francesco Napoletano?), about 1490–9
- An Angel in Red with a Lute - Giovanni Ambrogio de Predis, about 1495–9
- The Virgin and Child - Giovanni Antonio Boltraffio, probably about 1493–9
- Narcissus - Follower of Giovanni Antonio Boltraffio, probably about 1500
- Christ carrying his Cross - Giampietrino, probably about 1510–30
- Saint John the Baptist in the Desert - Martino Piazza, 1513–22
- Christ among the Doctors - Bernardino Luini, probably about 1515–30
- The Virgin and Child with Saint John - Bernardino Luini, probably late 1510s
- The Virgin and Child - Workshop of Bernardino Luini, early 16th century
- Portrait of a Man aged 20 ('The Archinto Portrait') - Marco d'Oggiono, 1494
IMAGE
Francesco Melzi (1493–1570),
Flora, about 1520
Oil on canvas, transferred from panel,
76 × 63 cm
© The State Hermitage Museum, St. Petersburg, 2019.
Photo: Vladimir Terebenin
PRESS ENQUIRIES
National Gallery Press Office on 020 7747 2865 or email press@ng-london.org.uk
Publicity images can be obtained from https://press.nationalgallery.org.uk/