Evidence indicates that Leonardo had apprentices and pupils in Milan, for whom he probably wrote the various texts later compiled as Treatise on Painting (1651; translated 1956). The most important of his own paintings during the early Milan period was The Virgin of the Rocks, two versions of which exist (1483-1485, Louvre, Paris; 1490s to 1506-1508, National Gallery, London); he worked on the compositions for a long time, as was his custom, seemingly unwilling to finish what he had begun. From 1495  to 1497 Leonardo labored on his masterpiece, The Last Supper, a mural in the refectory of the Monastery of Santa Maria delle Grazie, Milan. Unfortunately, his experimental use of oil on dry plaster (on what was the thin outer wall of a space designed for serving food) was technically unsound, and by 1500 its deterioration had begun. Since 1726 attempts have been made, unsuccessfully, to restore it; a concerted restoration and conservation program, making use of the latest technology, was begun in 1977 and is reversing some of the damage. Although much of the original surface is gone, the majesty of the composition and the penetrating characterization of the figures give a fleeting vision of its vanished splendor. 

During his long stay in Milan, Leonardo also produced other paintings and drawings (most of which have been lost), theater designs, architectural drawings, and models for the dome of Milan Cathedral. His largest commission was for a colossal bronze monument to Francesco Sforza, father of Ludovico, in the courtyard of Castello Sforzesco. In December 1499, however, the Sforza family was driven from Milan by French forces; Leonardo left the statue unfinished (it was destroyed by French archers, who used the terra cotta model as a target) and he returned to Florence in 1500. 

"Leonardo da Vinci," Microsoft® Encarta® Encyclopedia 99. © 1993-1998 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved.

 

Edouard Monet (1863-1883) 
"Colour is all a question of taste and sensibility."

"You must have something to say - if not, you might as well pack up."

"One isn't a painter if one doesn't love painting more than anything else in the world, and it isn't enough to know your job;  you've got to be excited by it."

"To be concise and short in painting is both necessary and in good taste.  The man who is concise makes one think;  the talkative man just irritates you... Also, train your memory, for nature will never give you more hints."

Vincent van Gogh (1853-1890) 
"Accent the essential, and leave the obvious vague."

Auguste Renoir (1841-1919) 
"Nowadays they want to explain everything.  But if they could explain a picture, it wouldn't be art."

Robert Henri (1865-1929) 
"The great artist has not reproduced nature, but has expressed by his extract the most choice sensation it has made upon him."

"An artist who does not use his imagination is a mechanic."

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