LEONARDO DA VINCI (VINCI 1452-AMBOISE 1519)
The drapery of a kneeling figure
c.1491-4RCIN 912521
In April 1483 Leonardo was commissioned to paint an altarpiece, now known as The Virgin of the Rocks, for a church in Milan. A first version (Louvre, Paris) was not delivered, for uncertain reasons. Leonardo then began a second version (National Gallery, London) in the early 1490s, which was finally installed in 1508. This is a study for the angel’s drapery in the second painting.