Leonardo da Vinci exhibition at ArtScience Museum this Nov

SINGAPORE - Original masterpieces from world renowned Italian artist and inventor Leonardo da Vinci will be making their Southeast Asian debut at ArtScience Museum at Marina Bay Sands this November.

The exhibition, Da Vinci: Shaping the Future, will present 26 original pages of da Vinci's largest notebook, Codex Atlanticus, which collects some of his most important drawings and writings. It also features six original paintings from the School of Leonardo.

The masterpieces - which come from renowned Renaissance museum in Milan, the Biblioteca Ambrosiana - will highlight five key domains of his mastery: mathematics, natural sciences, technology, architecture and music.

One of da Vinci's notable works, the "Mechanical Wing", will be featured at the exhibition, which will be held from Nov 15, 2014 to May 2015. This drawing of a winged device, which was modelled after the wings of birds, formed the basis for the construction of modern aircraft.

Visitors can also get to view masterpieces from the School of Leonardo, including paintings such as Saint John the Baptist , The Adoration of Saint Roch, and Portrait of a Lady.

In addition to the masterpieces and the Codex Atlanticus, visitors will learn about da Vinci's scientific and artistic pursuits through models of his inventions and innovative new interactive exhibits.

Over the course of the exhibition's six-month run, three of the paintings and 13 pages of the Codex Atlanticus will be swapped at the three-month mark. This is to let visitors experience more of da Vinci's works.

Executive director of ArtScience Museum, Ms Honor Harger, said that the exhibition is an ideal representation of the museum's "ongoing efforts to showcase the creativity and interrelation of art, science and technology".

Admission fees to the exhibition have not been specified.

For more information on Da Vinci: Shaping the Future, visit www.marinabaysands.com/ArtScienceMuseum.

stephluo@sph.com.sg