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Immersive digital art gallery The Lume’s next exhibition will focus on the life and work of Italian polymath Leonardo da Vinci.
Leonardo da Vinci – 500 Years of Genius will look at both the legendary figure and his creations. “We’re focusing on everything from his private inner life, to the brilliance of his artistic ability and his monumental scientific genius,” says Josh Cameron who, along with fellow creative director Andrew Montague, is heading up the project.
Leonardo da Vinci – 500 Years of Genius will open at The Lume in March 2024.Credit: Eddie Jim
The Lume is known for its inventive use of projections – their inaugural exhibition centred on tortured artist Vincent van Gogh and allowed visitors to feel as though they were walking through the works themselves.
For da Vinci, however, Cameron emphasises that this isn’t simply going to be da Vinci’s most famous works projected, larger than life, on different surfaces – the goal is to offer a glimpse into explore who da Vinci really was.
So, how will they accomplish this? The Lume won’t be starting from scratch – parent company Grande Experiences own and operate Museo Leonardo da Vinci in Rome and have run different touring Leonardo da Vinci exhibitions all over the world, which will provide a strong launching pad.
For this specific exhibition however Cameron points to a few different techniques, including showing what was happening beyond the edges of a canvas. Despite being a prolific inventor, scientist and artist, da Vinci completed few paintings. So, The Lume will be drawing on da Vinci’s codices – thousands of pages of handwritten notes where he outlined findings, ideas and occasionally some insights into his more private life.
The Lume will draw on da Vinci’s writings to shape the upcoming exhibition.Credit: Alicia Taylor
By drawing on da Vinci’s own writing and bringing in artists and illustrators to create unique works for this exhibition, Cameron hopes to plunge people into da Vinci’s world. “They’ll feel like they’re in Tuscany, or they’ll feel like they’re in Florence or Milan or Rome – we’re really trying to transport the audience to these certain places,” he explains.
The exhibition will also offer a different look at some familiar works. In 2015, French scientist Pascal Cotte claimed to have discovered a portrait hidden beneath the Mona Lisa by using reflective light technology. Through a collaboration between scientist and gallery, both the well-known masterpiece and Cotte’s discovery will be put on display. “You will be able to interrogate this discovery by Pascal for yourself,” says Cameron. Cotte’s hidden painting is both similar and alien, with one of the most marked differences being the eyes. “The first painting wasn’t even looking at the viewer”.
Theories about who the Mona Lisa really was, why it was painted, and why da Vinci valued it so highly have been hotly contested for years.
“It’s been interesting navigating the information about the Mona Lisa, because of course, it’s plagued with lots of theories and hearsay. So you’ve got to sort of wade through this miasma of misinformation to really get to the bottom of it,” says Cameron. “Like Leonardo da Vinci we’re obeying the science and the observational science to present to the audience exactly what the Mona Lisa is about. So we’ll cut through all that misinformation.”
The exhibition will offer a different look at some familiar works.Credit: Eddie Jim
Da Vinci’s words will also be given shape via “machine inventions”, created by and on loan from the Museo Leonardo da Vinci which used the inventor’s sketches to create a series of 50 different structures including concepts for flying machines.
All of what is planned, however, comes back to the man himself. “I think the personal is a huge part of what we need to do at The Lume because I think it’s expected of us – we want to know who these artists are personally. So we’ll dive into everything.”
Leonardo da Vinci – 500 Years of Genius opens at The Lume, located at the Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre, on March 15, 2024.
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