Oh Mona

At the start of my summer vacation, I am already checking books of my list. The first I completed was: Becoming Mona Lisa. Overall, I really enjoyed the book. Very educational in the world of renaissance art, Leo da Vinci, and of course, the most famous painting in the world. It was rather interesting to read about how the painting actually got to such a state, and although some chapters were a little heavy and in-depth for my purposes, you really get an inside look into the world's most famous painting and the many different factors that all helped contribute to its fame. Of course, Mona and da Vinci are everwhere these days with the Code out and all, and this was a good reading that I actually used in a discussion last night with one of the bartenders at my restaurant. I mean, the fascination with Mona Lisa's smile and da Vinci's claim as the "ultimate renaissance man" really didn't even start till the 18th century. And as for the Last Supper painting in Rome, well, I guess it's too bad that da Vinci didn't even know how to properly mix his paints and hence, the painting pretty much began wasting away the day after it was completed. Perhaps that's what made the code easier to find.