Leonardo and the Mona Lisa Story

by Donald Sassoon

We've all seen that famous smile a thousand times. It graces the face of La Gioconda, or the Mona Lisa, created by Leonardo da Vinci around 1505. Five centuries later, her mysterious smile has reached celebrity status. Da Vinci himself is in the public eye like no other artist before him. Yet few of us know the compelling story of this priceless world treasure; how she was created; her impact on other artists; the story of her theft; and how, through a mix of luck, history and her own innate beauty, she came to be regarded as the world's greatest painting.

In this engaging story, told largely in pictures, and presented in a unique forma, acclaimed historian and Mona Lisa scholar Donald Sassoon offers us an intimate look at the painting's history and the genius who gave the Mona Lisa lasting life, revealed in more than four hundred paintings, photographs, and illustrations. From photographs of Florence to paintings by Leonardo's Florentine contemporaries; from canvases by nineteenth-century masters that detail the Victorian enthusiasm for Leonardo to parodies of the Mona Lisa by Duchamp and Warhol; from commercial appropriations to cartoons; Leonardo and the Mona Lisa Story unlocks the history behind the painting and illustrates just how much she continues to influence our culture.

Genres: Art, Nonfiction, Art History, History

348 pages, Paperback

Published January 1, 2006

About the author

Donald Sassoon is Emeritus Professor of Comparative European History at Queen Mary, University of London.

Reviews

[John Nelson · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book provides a primarily pictorial history of the life of Leonardo and the legend of the Mona Lisa. It begins with paintings of Leonardo's milieu - northern Italy during the Renaissance - as well as paintings, drawings, and diagrams made by Leonardo and his contemporaries; continues with the story of the painting's growing fame and some of its greatest admirers, including such protean figures as Napoleon Bonaparte and Oscar Wilde; covers the personalities and events surrounding the theft of the painting in 1911 in what undoubtedly was the greatest artwork heist in history and its eventual return to the Louvre; and concludes with Mona's more contemporary as a focus of celebrity culture and pop-art ripoffs. As time goes by, photographs gradually replace paintings and drawings in the book's narrative. All in all, this book provides an interesting, though not very substantive, history of the world's most famous painting.

[Tom James · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fascinating account of how the Mona Lisa became the most famous painting in the world because of Leonardo DaVinci's brilliance and popularity, not only as a painter, but as a mathematician and scientist. Nevertheless, it was not until the late nineteenth century that the portrait of the mysterious lady with the enigmatic smile became chief among Leonardo's masterpieces. Especially interesting is the story of how the Mona Lisa was stolen in 1911 and eventually returned by the thief to an art dealer in Florence a couple of years later. The book is filled with full-coloured pictures that make this journey through time a visual delight as well.

[Emily Szasz · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mostly images, some salient points.

[Lucinda · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a fun book. It is a short history on the Mona Lisa from the very beginning to 2005. "Leonardo and the Mona Lisa Story" is a visual journey through the life of Mona Lisa. Donald Sassoon tells the story of the painting through words and pictures. What a great way to tell an art story; pictures and words.

[Tina · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fab overview of Leonardo da Vinci's Mona Lisa by using other important art historical works. If come across at the library, pick up!

[Chris · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loved the picture book aspect if this, and that it told the story with such a limited narrative. Something that has become such a darling of our media culture explained and explored.