Leonardo Da Vinci and Vincent Van Gogh

When I first began painting in oils, I found that imitating a great artist helped me learn a lot. I initially found 'Mona Lisa' a bit boring, because I prefer vibrant, alive expressions and this seemed outdated. But when I got down to painting her skin tones, I learnt how Leonardo works in layers to achieve a luminous quality.

the artist behind the painting -
Leonardo Da Vinci is a high achiever from Florence - an inventor, scientist, mathematician engineer, sculptor, painter, architect, musician and writer who keeps a journal written in a mirror image cursive handwriting (he is left handed) that helps keep his ideas a secret.

I've done about 6 reproductions of different masters, but Vincent Van Gogh is one of my most favorite artists. I'm inspired by his dramatic individualistic strokes and use of contrasts in color. He has an informal style characteristic of one who defies convention. I did this one for Cafe Coffee Day at Bangalore many years ago.

the artist behind the painting
Vincent is the oppostite of Leonardo. An intense Dutch painter supported by his brother Theo, he makes a few false starts as a clerk in a bookstore, an art salesman and a preacher. Unfortunately, his fame as an artist is posthumous having sold only one painting during his life. Shooting himself in the head after partly recovering from fits of insanity, he brings his life to a tragic end.