Chiaroscuro: The Private Lives of Leonardo da Vinci

by Pat McGreal, David Rawson

shelf S

Genres: Graphic Novels, Comics, History, Biography, Historical, Art

264 pages, Paperback

First published November 1, 2005

About the author

Pat McGreal was a prolific writer of Disney Comics for the Egmont Company overseas, much of it later republished in this country. His non-Disney work included three graphic novels for DC/Vertigo: Chiaroscro; The Private Lives of Leonardo DaVinci, Veils and I, Paparazzi. Among the comic books he wrote for were Captain Marvel, Tarzan, The Simpsons, Judge Dredd, The Flash, Justice League, Indiana Jones, Martian Manhunter and Fighting American.
He was an Eisner Award nominee and a past president of the Comic Art Professonal Society.

Reviews

[Zefyr · Rating 3 out of 5]

Things I think are awesome: Vertigo (which is all over the place in quality but is worth it for taking risks on ideas with good potential), Leonardo da Vinci (who is a term for quality and potential). I eyed this comic for years before picking it up and then it sat on my shelf for ears because man, I did not like the cover. I still don't. The Photoshopped burned-out lines look tacky, the image resolution is so low you can see the pixels, and photographing actors in the role of characters looks silly to me when it's not stills from a film or play (and, see below). Considering the quality of the illustration in the comic itself, the cover art is preposterous. The individual comic covers beyond the one used on the trade graphic novel get a little better in terms of style and layout, but they still feel like an unfortunate add-on rather than a complement to the work.

So, the worst thing about this comic is the cover art, and the best thing is the phenomenal comic illustration. The research for that art was amazing, and most of the people look like comic illustrations of people pictured in art from the period, not just in costume but also in stylistic approach to physical features The exceptions are Catherine, who often looks more John Tenniel drawing Looney Tunes, and the glasslike psychadelically-colored bird, which seems to be better integrated into the art style than Catherine, at least because it's clearly supposed to be fantastical and dreamstuff. And perhaps that research and attention to detail for the art is what makes the cover art so awful: when casting a play or film, appearances can be approximated, but a photograph is a bit different. The people photographed as da Vinci and Salai look so much unlike the images of them that have lasted through history that, well, they just wind up looking like models. And it's a comic. Why do a crappy photomontage when you can get a good illustrator?

As to the story itself: rather than trying to relate the life of Leonardo or any of the other major historical figures of the period, McGreal and Rawson had the wonderful idea to use the story of Salai as a vehicle for the intersections between these people. From the comic, I got the impression that Salai was an errand-runner type assistant to Leonardo who briefly attempted, out of admiration for Leonardo, to make some art himself but barely got anywhere. From an exceedingly brief time on Google, I found almost immediately that he was also a pupil of Leonardo's, and a far better artist than I am if not on Leonardo's level. Artistic liberties to tell a story? That always gets complicated, but I have to say, Salai's sole artistic attempt in the comic becomes a part of the comic's narrative on which many parts of the story seem to rest. It's the difference between excluding a spouse because they're not relevant to the story, and making the story rely on the main character being a swinging bachelor.

Alisa Kwitney, the Vertigo editor for the comic, says in the introduction: "If you want a quick way to check what's fact and what's fiction, try this: Anything that seems particularly outrageous, it's a fact." I suppose the missing part of that statement is that anything that seems less than particularly outrageous is, well, subject to significantly liberal rewrite. I like historical fiction. Things like this make the story feel like historical fanfiction.

So, read like historical fanfiction, it's a fun story. Read as historical fiction, well, bring your saltshakers and focus on the gorgeous artwork. Just...not the covers.

[Kim · Rating 3 out of 5]

I picked up the first issue of this decades (!) ago - and it’s always occupied a spot of “What was the name of that comic again? I really should finish it.” And here we are, decades (!!) later. It says something that the book was unique enough to stick with me all of these years, sitting in a small space of my brain. After finally having read it, I can finally put it to bed.

It’s a little (a lot) melodramatic and the late 90s photoshop covers are equally a lot (as I don’t really recall anything close to them at the time), but more than the book itself, I appreciate that it represents the “Fuck it; let’s print it!” attitude that made Vertigo so incredible at the time. Historical fiction in comics (outside of manga) is rare, especially ones where the artist and writer clearly care about the subject, and that alone makes it worth the read.

[Fraser Sherman · Rating 2 out of 5]

That 1990s Vertigo would even try a series like this explains why Vertigo was such a legend back then.
This series bounces around the life of DaVinci, focusing on his relationship with the conniving, amoral but handsome servant boy Salai. It's more fiction and speculation than fact, which I'm fine with, but ultimately it just didn't click with me.

[Jymi Cliche · Rating 4 out of 5]

Some of the art was just so-so for me because I don't usually get into stuff from this time period usually, but some of the art was amazing, and I especially loved the depictions of Da Vinci's work. I found myself shocked and disturbed by some parts of the book, like with how some people were treated like objects, and not as human, and there was some other disturbing stuff as well, but I appreciate that it was included to tell the story of what things were likely really like.

[Anthony · Rating 5 out of 5]

Back in 1995-96, DC Comics' Vertigo imprint put out a ten issues miniseries called Chiaroscuro: The Life and Times of Leonardo da Vinci. Written by Pat McGreal and David Rawson, illustrated by Chaz Truog and Rafael Kayanan, with photo covers by Stephen John Phillips. This was around the time, if memory serves, that Neil Gaiman's Sandman had hit its stride, and Vertigo was still more well-known for Hellblazer (the source material for the movie "Constantine") and the spectacular run of Swamp Thing that ran from Alan Moore and Bissette/Totleben through Rich Veitch, and Animal Man (borderline superheroes all), than for the kind of non-super-hero mystery and crime genre stuff they are most well-known for in the current market.

Still, I think even in the current market, Chiaroscuro would stand apart from the crowd. No tights (well, okay, EVERYONE in tights .. the book does take place in the late 14 and early 1500s.), no blood and gore, no horror. Just a straight forward fictional biography.

The authors took what they knew about Leonardo and his contemporaries, and filled in the blanks as logically as they could. What they come up with is one very plausible Life of Leonardo, well researched. And the artists went to the wall as well, drawing what seems to me to be highly authentic Renaissance life.

As editor Alisa Kwitney comments in her introduction, the story is just as fresh and interesting now (especially with the renewed interest in Leonardo thanks to Dan Brown's thriller), and collected all in one volume, it's easier to follow all the weaving narrative threads and artistic motifs. And it certainly makes you think about how much the world has changed in 600 years, and yet how little. Especially in terms of how people treat each other, how easy it is to hurt the ones we love, and what some people will do (and give up) in the name of ambition.

I highly recommend it. ISBN # is 1-4012-0498-8, trade paperback. Check it out

[Don · Rating 3 out of 5]

DC Comics' Vertigo line in the early '90s must have been a fascinating place, where seemingly anything could happen. How else could one account for the green-lighting of a massive, ten-issue-long piece of historical fiction like this? And yet the collected edition here is clearly the form it was ultimately designed for, as the intricately structured plot weaves around and around, touch once and again on certain times and events, only illuminating the earlier allusions when the moment is dramatically right. Keeping track of all the details is challenging enough when reading the work over the course of a few days; doing so over the ten months of its original publication would have been impossible.

Mixing biography, conjecture and drama, the story painted of Leonardo and his young ward, Salai, is a complex one filled with ambition, desire, politicking, philosophy, and sex. The outlooks DaVinci and Salai voice are often bleak ones tinged with cynicism and regret, but their relationships - dark and otherwise - are as compelling as the secrets they hold. How much of it is historically accurate and how much is true, I've no idea. But it reads as plausibly true, and keeps your attention throughout.

[Devon · Rating 1 out of 5]

I picked this up (long ago now) when I was researching Leonardo da Vinci and Renaissance Italy. I like to supplement my research with fictional works surrounding the same topic, usually, because I enjoy seeing what others have done with the material. That the central character of this comic series was Salai, I was especially interested.

I was ultimately disappointed by the book. The art was a miss for me, and it often seemed hurried or somehow rushed. It didn’t grab me. The writers drew from historical fact, but I felt they embellished a little more than they should have in many places, or pushed and sensationalized the “unsavoury” aspects and characters to the point that it was grating. I don’t mind an unlikable or problematic protagonist, but they pushed Salai too far into that area, making him more a caricature than a real character. And they did the same with Leonardo. In the scene where the heart of the story should have been, in the ultimate tragedy (as it were) of Leonardo and Salai’s relationship, it fell absolutely flat.

I would not recommend it. But if you are curious, I would say, as another reviewer said: read it as historical fanfiction, at best, with a large helping of salt.

[Thebruce1314 · Rating 2 out of 5]

While the concept was interesting - who would have dreamed of a comic book about Leonardo da Vinci, especially one based in truth? - the storyline was lacklustre and the characters were flat. I appreciate the work and genius of da Vinci, but this comic actually made me like him less as a person. The action revolves around the artist and Salai, a servant boy that da Vinci raised. There was some speculation of a love story between the two, but nothing is ever resolved and, by the end, I really felt as though nothing much had happened. Some of the artwork is visually pleasing, and this is a nice collected edition of the original ten comics, but overall not a great read.

[Sarah]

This one is going to be an acquired taste. I found myself getting completely sucked in -- the historical detail is immaculate and the characters are strong. However this is not an action packed history. In fact, not a lot actually happens in this book. Instead of a heavy plot we get personal politics and betrayals. Both da Vinci and Salai are a mess personally, and watching their big ball o' fuck up play out is highly entertaining. But that is coming from someone who finds complex and layered historical epics awesome.

[Rae · Rating 3 out of 5]

I don't think I care for graphic novels very much, and so that's hardly this book's fault. I really liked From Hell, and so I've been picking up graphic novels that sound interesting every now and then from the public library. This one, like From Hell, is historical fiction, and that appealed to me, and it's queer, so that appealed to me, too. But the central conflict between di Vinci and his protege Salai was a bit too understated for me and I think the connections between the plot and known history are a bit of a stretch.

[Shane · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was interesting. I didn't like the art at all (except the covers), but I thought the story was entertaining. I never really understood what da Vinci's intentions for Salai. I wasn't sure if he was meant to be a lover or a son - or both (ew...).

If you like period pieces and comics I would say definitely give it a try.

[Tina Rose · Rating 3 out of 5]

A fun historical fiction packed in a graphic novel. I enjoyed the read but at times I found my mind drifting off and had to go back and reread sections. I think the fact that I really enjoy art history and historical fiction particularly is the only real thing that kept me reading.

[DeAnna Knippling · Rating 5 out of 5]

Okay. Cover? Weird. And if you don't like Machiavelli, then you won't like this: the main character is a @#$%. NONE of these characters are nice, good, decent, etc.

Get past that and it's a masterpiece. Great art, fabulous writing, amazing history.

[Casey · Rating 3 out of 5]

I started out really, really liking this... and then somewhere down the line it got a little too weird/dark for my taste. I do however think that it's really clever, well researched, and as the forward points out surprisingly plausible given how crazy some of it is.

[Kenny · Rating 4 out of 5]

Leonardo Da Vinci, his private, controversial life explored. The way only Vertigo can. Shocking.

[Jack · Rating 3 out of 5]

A decade before "The Da Vinci Code" got people all riled up for the original heartthrob named Leonardo, this book tried to do the same thing. But this one lacks a murder mystery or secret codes, and has a LOT more sex and Renaissance politics. While the comparison to TDC is natural, this is thematically and structurally closer to "Amadeus" - a character study showing a genius' flaws from a perspective that is more personal than their legends, told through the lens of another figure from the time, bookended by a jealous relationship with the storyteller. The relationship between Leo and Salai is interesting, but not enough that I would have stuck with the series without it being collected together. The art is reaching for an impossible standard by trying to depict Da Vinci's AND Michaelangelo's work along with both real and invented faces/fashions/events. That said, the art is serviceable (unless a character is yelling or grimacing and it gets anachronistically cartoony for my tastes). There are some interesting things done with layouts, coloring, and visual motifs that enhance the storytelling and keep some scenes engaging that otherwise would have been talking heads.

The covers deserve a special mention because they are abysmal, to the point of distracting from the overall story. I can only assume that Vertigo was chasing the success of mixed-media/photographic cover artists like Dave McKean, but recruited only from a high school art class. Remember that episode of The Simpsons where Homer went into a 3D world, and it was supposed to look futuristic and cool, but instead it looked immediately dated and silly? These covers are like that, except that The Simpsons is a comedy so silly is ok, and this takes itself deeply, deeply seriously. Not that this will probably be reprinted, but if it is they need to (1) change the cover of the collection, and (2) commission some new art to include at the heads of chapters and put the original covers in an appendix in the back.

Finally, the supplementary materials (introduction, forward, and some concept art) give a little context, though the afterword detracts by suggesting that the central question of the preceding story was "was Da Vinci gay?" The story, to me, sends a pretty strong message of "this relationship is more complicated and evolving than a label could ever define, even for the characters themselves," so the question of the afterword seems reductive.

Overall, this book is a mixed bag. I feel like I learned a little about Renaissance social and political life and I liked the central characters okayly, but not enough to outweigh the annoying bits.