Kuwait Times

Published Date: March 20, 2007
By Chisaki Watanabe

An exhibition exploring the mind of Leonardo da Vinci, featuring his masterpiece "Annunciation," opens in Tokyo today despite protests in the artist's native Italy over lending out the priceless painting. The loan of the painting to Tokyo's National Museum set off outrage in Italy, prompting an Italian senator to chain himself to the Uffizi Museum in Florence, Italy. Critics said it would needlessly endanger an irreplaceable 15th century masterpiece that has seldom left its homeland. But after a 12-hour journey halfway around the world, the painting arrived in Japan last week unscathed.  "This work is Italy's national treasure. It is a good starting point to explore a new image of Leonardo," Hidehiro Ikegami, art historian at Tokyo's Keisen University, said at a preview yesterday. Ikegami is supervising the Tokyo exhibition, which runs through June 17.

The exhibition will help viewers better understand him as a multitalented person, he said of da Vinci, whose inventions and accomplishments in science have established him as the prototypical Renaissance man.  "Annunciation" is encased behind a $50,000 bulletproof crystal window shielding it from the outside world, and its steel case is designed to survive an earthquake in one of world's most seismically active countries.

The museum also placed the painting so crowds of people can view it from afar. The loan has stirred controversy in the world of Italian art, where conflicts over the management of the country's cultural treasures and loans of important art works to foreign countries cause considerable anxiety.  It is only the third time "Annunciation" has left the Uffizi.

To ensure safe passage, the nearly 2 meter by 1 meter (6.5 foot by 3 foot) painting was bundled into three protective crates filled with shock-absorbers and high-tech sensors to monitor humidity, temperature and stress levels.  In Italy, art historians and intellectuals, including filmmaker Franco Zeffirelli, signed a petition asking Culture Minister Francesco Rutelli to cancel the loan.
The senator who chained himself, Paolo Amato, has said the transfer exposes a priceless masterpiece to unnecessary risk and commercialises the country's cultural heritage.  "Annunciation" is one of Leonardo's early works, painted in 1472-1475, when the master was in his early 20s.  It depicts the archangel Gabriel revealing to the Virgin Mary that she is pregnant.

Yesterday, Japan and Italy signed an agreement to promote cooperation in preserving their cultural heritage, Japan's Agency for Cultural Affairs said. Both Japan and Italy have been actively engaged in cultural preservation, and the agreement will further enhance such efforts, agency official Atsuyuki Asano said. - AP