A major exhibition dedicated to the scientific genius of Leonardo da Vinci opened in Rome on Wednesday, part of festivities to mark the 500th anniversary of the death of the artist and inventor. The show at the Scuderie del Quirinale palace, entitled “La scienza prima della scienza” (the science before science), traces the technological and scientific work of da Vinci and reflects on how “the myth of Leonardo” was developed. More than 200 pieces are on display including some of his most famous works, which are credited with developing the parachute, helicopter and tank, the museum said ahead of the launch. Da Vinci was a “European citizen of the world,” said exhibition curator Claudio Giorgione.

Filling the Sainsbury Wing exhibition galleries, the display will feature sixty works spanning the artist’s career, including important masterpieces on loan from public and private collections in Europe and the United States. This will be the first UK retrospective of the artist since 1908 when Sorolla himself mounted an exhibition at London’s Grafton Galleries where he was promoted as The World’s Greatest Living Painter. While it was his sun-drenched depictions of the life, landscapes and traditions of Spain, as well as his gifts as a portraitist, which sealed his fame, Sorolla, who trained in Valencia and studied in Madrid and Rome, first won an international reputation for major works tackling social subjects. For the first time in the UK a series of these prized early social paintings will be brought together including his ‘The Return from Fishing’ (1894, Paris, Musée d’Orsay), which was bought by the French government; and ‘Sewing the Sail’ (1896, Fondazione Musei C

World-renowned Asia Week New York celebrates a milestone when the curtain goes up on March 13th for its 10 days of whirlwind activities. It also marks the occasion’s 10th anniversary. For a decade now, Asia Week New York has commanded a role as the most influential Asian art market event in North America. “Asia Week New York has lots of reasons to kick up its heels—and so much to be proud of,” notes Asia Week Chair Christina Prescott-Walker, Senior Vice President, Division Director Asian Art and Decorative Arts at Sotheby’s. “Asia Week New York is without a doubt firmly established as a must-attend destination for curators and discerning private collectors alike. And the global response just keeps building and building year after year, which is thrilling!” This year, 48 international galleries, 6 auction houses and 16 cultural institutions will be part of Asia Week New York’s 10 full days o

This marble portrait bust of 1687 portrays Marguerite Louise of Orléans, wife of Cosimo III de’ Medici, the enfant terrible of the Medici dynasty. A free-spirited woman, Marguerite Louise, although she bore Cosimo three heirs, never submitted emotionally to the marriage, and came to despise her husband, his family and the Court in Florence, and made Cosimo’s life miserable. Eventually she obtained a separation, returned to France, and lived as she pleased, bringing even her cousin King Louis XIV to despair at her outrageous behaviour. The marble bust is offered by Carlo Orsi-Trinity Fine Art, Stand 379, at TEFAF Maastricht with several fresh discoveries: previously unpublished documents clarifying that it was commissioned by the Medici, that it is a fully autograph work by Giovanni Battista Foggini (Florence 1652-1725), a contention borne out by specific payments made to the sculptor, and that it wa