--- product_id: 48818166 title: "Leonardo Da Vinci: The Biography" price: "FREE" currency: EUR in_stock: false reviews_count: 13 url: https://www.desertcart.at/products/48818166-leonardo-da-vinci-the-biography store_origin: AT region: Austria --- # Leonardo Da Vinci: The Biography **Price:** FREE **Availability:** ❌ Out of Stock ## Quick Answers - **What is this?** Leonardo Da Vinci: The Biography - **How much does it cost?** FREE with free shipping - **Is it available?** Currently out of stock - **Where can I buy it?** [www.desertcart.at](https://www.desertcart.at/products/48818166-leonardo-da-vinci-the-biography) ## Best For - Customers looking for quality international products ## Why This Product - Free international shipping included - Worldwide delivery with tracking - 15-day hassle-free returns ## Description The #1 New York Times Bestseller ‘Walter Isaacson is not an art historian, he’s simply a lover of Leonardo, who manages to communicate the sheer joy of this remarkable man’ Books of the Year - The Times ‘Walter Isaacson keeps the mortal man to the fore. For all his supernatural gifts as an artist and natural scientist. Leonardo was resolutely human (illegitimate, vegan, in need of patrons) rather than the near deity of legend. Isaacson is an assured guide to Leonardo’s fallibility – so many projects started, so few completed – as well as his extraordinary curiosity and his even more remarkable painterly skills that were sharpened by intense observation.’ Michael Prodger, Books of the Year - The Sunday Times 'Infinitely curious, easily distracted, vain and vegetarian, Leonardo is brought to vivid life in this accomplished biography.' - The Sunday Times . 'an illuminating guide to the output of one of the last millennium's greatest minds.' - The Observer 'Isaacson doesn’t claim to make any fresh discoveries, but his book is intelligently organised, simply written and beautifully illustrated.' Book of the Day, The Guardian . 'Isaacson’s scholarship is impressive—he cites not only primary sources but secondary materials by art critics, essayists, and da Vinci’s other biographers. This is a monumental tribute to a titanic figure.' - Publisher's Weekly “A powerful story of an exhilarating mind and life...a study in creativity: how to define it, how to achieve it.”— The New Yorker “Vigorous, insightful.”— The Washington Post “A masterpiece.”— San Francisco Chronicle “Luminous.”— The Daily Beast 'To read this magnificent biography of Leonardo da Vinci is to take a tour through the life and works of one of the most extraordinary human beings of all time in the company of the most engaging, informed, and insightful guide imaginable. Walter Isaacson is at once a true scholar and a spellbinding writer. And what a wealth of lessons there are to be learned in these pages.' David McCullough The creator of Salvator Mundi (Saviour of the World) officially sold at auction in New York in November 2017 for the record-breaking sum of £341 million. He was history’s most creative genius. What secrets can he teach us? Based on thousands of pages from Leonardo’s astonishing notebooks and new discoveries about his life and work, Walter Isaacson weaves a narrative that connects his art to his science. He shows how Leonardo’s genius was based on skills we can improve in ourselves, such as passionate curiosity, careful observation, and an imagination so playful that it flirted with fantasy. He produced the two most famous paintings in history, The Last Supper and the Mona Lisa . But in his own mind, he was just as much a man of science and technology. With a passion that sometimes became obsessive, he pursued innovative studies of anatomy, fossils, birds, the heart, flying machines, botany, geology, and weaponry . His ability to stand at the crossroads of the humanities and the sciences, made iconic by his drawing of Vitruvian Man , made him history’s most creative genius. His creativity, like that of other great innovators, came from having wide-ranging passions. He peeled flesh off the faces of cadavers, drew the muscles that move the lips, and then painted history’s most memorable smile. He explored the math of optics, showed how light rays strike the cornea, and produced illusions of changing perspectives in The Last Supper . Isaacson also describes how Leonardo’s lifelong enthusiasm for staging theatrical productions informed his paintings and inventions. Leonardo’s delight at combining diverse passions remains the ultimate recipe for creativity. So, too, does his ease at being a bit of a misfit: illegitimate, gay, vegetarian, left-handed, easily distracted, and at times heretical. His life should remind us of the importance of instilling, both in ourselves and our children, not just received knowledge but a willingness to question it—to be imaginative and, like talented misfits and rebels in any era, to think different. Review: An outstanding biography, a real joy to read - I have just finished reading this beautifully written biography of Leonardo da Vinci and feel quite bereft that it is the end of a wonderful journey with a genius. Thank you, Walter Isaacson. I shall never look at a woodpecker without thinking of Leonardo’s to-do list “describe the tongue of a woodpecker” and I have started to train myself to try to look at the world around me with Leonardo’s intense curiosity and thirst for knowledge. The many illustrations in the book are essential so I would recommend you purchase the hardcover. I am yet to place one of the pictures of the manuscripts in front of a mirror as Leonardo wrote in mirror script but it is on my “to do list”. The reviews “ first class” and “ brilliant evocation…” will give anyone who is hesitating about purchasing this book an excellent idea of what they will thoroughly enjoy reading. Review: First class - As would be expected from Walter Isaacson, this is wonderfully written and enthusiastic book. It has over 140 excellent illustrations. We sense the atmosphere in 1470s Florence under ruler Lorenzo Medici. Apprentice Leonardo begins to outshine his master Verrocchio. Illustrations of two paintings in which they collaborated, Tobias and the Angel, and the Baptism of Christ, are used to compare their styles. For the former, a comparison is made with an earlier version by another artist shows the remarkable evolution achieved by Verrocchio’s school. Leonardo is there at the forefront in the improvement in presentation of animation, perspective, sfumato, chiarresco, as well as landscapes. He finds himself overcome by his own perfectionism, a brilliant polymath mind restrained from carrying out his ideas to completion and exasperating those brave enough to give him commissions. The author draws on quotes from Leonardo’s notebooks. Leonardo focused on conception rather than execution. He procrastinated. He kept hold of his masterpieces with the intention of perfecting them. He was a genius with shadows, reflection of light, and perspective. Unlike Florentine contemporaries such as Botticelli, for example, he was disinclined to flatter his patrons by including their likeness in his paintings. It landed him few commissions. Leonardo moved to Milan to take up ephemeral duties as a producer of pageants for the ruler of Milan, to whom he had written the best job application ever proposing inventions for new weapons of war. Leonardo walked around Milan with his trademark notebook hanging from his belt. He was popular (he spent time with Cesare Borgia and Machiavelli among many other characters that dominated in his day), strong, and good looking, and seemed to always be on the go. There was fierce competition with the younger Michelangelo upon his eventual return to Florence. He was a vegetarian since he loved animals so much. His scientific discoveries form the major part of his achievements and this book. Not formally educated, he was a compulsive empiricist, applying his immense power of observation, learning from others and his own experiences, reading almost to addiction, constantly drawing parallels to further his understanding. His unpublished notebooks show how he became centuries ahead in his understanding of mechanics, science and anatomy. He wrote from right to left, i.e. in mirror script, and this has made some believe that perhaps he never wanted to broadcast his findings. One wonders if the intensity of his thoughts was reflected in some way by how he communicated. For patrons he had a string of essentially transactional strongmen of the likes of Sforza, Medici, and Borgia. He ended up with Francis II of France, who was much more generous. As he has done before, the author ends with a few useful pages of conclusion about his subject. He lists and describes what he sees as twenty essentials that contributed to Leonardo’s greatness. This is a first class biography. ## Features - Brand: Simon Schuster UK - Leonardo Da Vinci: The Biography ## Technical Specifications | Specification | Value | |---------------|-------| | Best Sellers Rank | 639,465 in Books ( See Top 100 in Books ) 1 in Renaissance Art 4 in Biographies of Artists, Architects & Photographers (Books) 11 in Individual Artists | | Customer Reviews | 4.6 out of 5 stars 11,064 Reviews | ## Images ![Leonardo Da Vinci: The Biography - Image 1](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/819sg4vB4tL.jpg) ## Customer Reviews ### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ An outstanding biography, a real joy to read *by M***S on 11 February 2026* I have just finished reading this beautifully written biography of Leonardo da Vinci and feel quite bereft that it is the end of a wonderful journey with a genius. Thank you, Walter Isaacson. I shall never look at a woodpecker without thinking of Leonardo’s to-do list “describe the tongue of a woodpecker” and I have started to train myself to try to look at the world around me with Leonardo’s intense curiosity and thirst for knowledge. The many illustrations in the book are essential so I would recommend you purchase the hardcover. I am yet to place one of the pictures of the manuscripts in front of a mirror as Leonardo wrote in mirror script but it is on my “to do list”. The reviews “ first class” and “ brilliant evocation…” will give anyone who is hesitating about purchasing this book an excellent idea of what they will thoroughly enjoy reading. ### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ First class *by E***Y on 10 January 2019* As would be expected from Walter Isaacson, this is wonderfully written and enthusiastic book. It has over 140 excellent illustrations. We sense the atmosphere in 1470s Florence under ruler Lorenzo Medici. Apprentice Leonardo begins to outshine his master Verrocchio. Illustrations of two paintings in which they collaborated, Tobias and the Angel, and the Baptism of Christ, are used to compare their styles. For the former, a comparison is made with an earlier version by another artist shows the remarkable evolution achieved by Verrocchio’s school. Leonardo is there at the forefront in the improvement in presentation of animation, perspective, sfumato, chiarresco, as well as landscapes. He finds himself overcome by his own perfectionism, a brilliant polymath mind restrained from carrying out his ideas to completion and exasperating those brave enough to give him commissions. The author draws on quotes from Leonardo’s notebooks. Leonardo focused on conception rather than execution. He procrastinated. He kept hold of his masterpieces with the intention of perfecting them. He was a genius with shadows, reflection of light, and perspective. Unlike Florentine contemporaries such as Botticelli, for example, he was disinclined to flatter his patrons by including their likeness in his paintings. It landed him few commissions. Leonardo moved to Milan to take up ephemeral duties as a producer of pageants for the ruler of Milan, to whom he had written the best job application ever proposing inventions for new weapons of war. Leonardo walked around Milan with his trademark notebook hanging from his belt. He was popular (he spent time with Cesare Borgia and Machiavelli among many other characters that dominated in his day), strong, and good looking, and seemed to always be on the go. There was fierce competition with the younger Michelangelo upon his eventual return to Florence. He was a vegetarian since he loved animals so much. His scientific discoveries form the major part of his achievements and this book. Not formally educated, he was a compulsive empiricist, applying his immense power of observation, learning from others and his own experiences, reading almost to addiction, constantly drawing parallels to further his understanding. His unpublished notebooks show how he became centuries ahead in his understanding of mechanics, science and anatomy. He wrote from right to left, i.e. in mirror script, and this has made some believe that perhaps he never wanted to broadcast his findings. One wonders if the intensity of his thoughts was reflected in some way by how he communicated. For patrons he had a string of essentially transactional strongmen of the likes of Sforza, Medici, and Borgia. He ended up with Francis II of France, who was much more generous. As he has done before, the author ends with a few useful pages of conclusion about his subject. He lists and describes what he sees as twenty essentials that contributed to Leonardo’s greatness. This is a first class biography. ### ⭐⭐⭐⭐ Good book but can be hard going *by R***S on 1 September 2018* I’m a fan of the author - the Steve Jobs biography was terrific As a definitive work on Da Vinci this is a hugely impressive feat It captures not just his life, but the essence of how he thought and his inquisitive nature that set him apart This book has given me a much greater understanding for who he was, the multi disciplined creative vibe in Florence and Rome at the time - as well as - a deeper appreciation of art BUT It is a lengthy book and hard going at times Do I think the essence could be distilled into something much much shorter - yes You could trim 150 pages, lose nothing and end up with a more concentrated product It’s a triple album that’s impressive in its grandeur and the amount of research that went in to it. Reading all his diaries etc Did it leave a lasting impression - yes Did I enjoy it - sometimes Did I look forward to finishing it and find it a bit arduous at other times - yes :-) --- ## Why Shop on Desertcart? - 🛒 **Trusted by 1.3+ Million Shoppers** — Serving international shoppers since 2016 - 🌍 **Shop Globally** — Access 737+ million products across 21 categories - 💰 **No Hidden Fees** — All customs, duties, and taxes included in the price - 🔄 **15-Day Free Returns** — Hassle-free returns (30 days for PRO members) - 🔒 **Secure Payments** — Trusted payment options with buyer protection - ⭐ **TrustPilot Rated 4.5/5** — Based on 8,000+ happy customer reviews **Shop now:** [https://www.desertcart.at/products/48818166-leonardo-da-vinci-the-biography](https://www.desertcart.at/products/48818166-leonardo-da-vinci-the-biography) --- *Product available on Desertcart Austria* *Store origin: AT* *Last updated: 2026-10-29*