"Leonardo da Vinci: Engineer and Architect," an Exhibition at the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts

Abstract

Major exhibits often mark turning points in public consciousness. The Armory Show of 1913 marks the public acceptance of modern art in America, while within living memory the Treasures of Tutankhamun show manifested the surprising popularity of ancient Egypt. With da Vinci: Engineer and Architect, which ran from May 22 until November 8, 1987, the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts (MMFA) gave public expression to a new view of the Florentine Master, emphasizing his technological oeuvre in a manner never before attempted. Major exhibits require a fine balance of forces. At the start they require money. Reports in the Canadian press credit the president of MMFA, Bernard Lamarre, with a major role in raising the estimated $3.2 million (Canadian) the show is said to have cost. Lamarre also chairs the Canadian Engineering Centennial, whose celebration the Leonardo exhibit helped commemorate, and he is as well chief executive officer of the giant engineering firm Lavalin. Perhaps this accounts for the list of corporate sponsors ranging like a Who's Who of Canadian firms from Air Canada to Xerox.