Leonardeschi

Leonardeschi is a term for a large group of artists who worked in the studio of or under the influence of Leonardo da Vinci. In 1472 da Vinci joined the Guild of St Luke and at the end of 1477 he left the studio of Andrea del Verrocchio as an independent artist. In 1482 Leonardo came to Milan where he stayed with Giovanni Ambrogio de Predis, Evangelista de Predis and their four brothers, who all were artists of different kinds. Both Predis brothers are known for having collaborated with Leonardo da Vinci in the painting of the Virgin of the Rocks for the altarpiece in the chapel of the Confraternity of the Immaculate Conception at the Church of San Francesco Grande, Milan. In 1490 Leonardo earned recognition and a breakthrough at the court of Ludovico Sforza and because of the scale of works commissioned he was permitted to have assistants and pupils in his own studio.

Among Leonardo’s pupils at this time were Giovanni Antonio Boltraffio, Ambrogio de Predis, Bernardino de' Conti, Francesco Napoletano, Andrea Solario, Marco d'Oggiono, and Salaì (known as Giacomo Caprotti or Andrea Salaino). In a letter to Ludovico in 1496 Leonardo claims he was having to maintain 6 people at the time. Along with these original pupils of Leonardo, during his second stay in Milan in 1508 Leonardo had relationships with other Milanese artists, such as Il Sodoma (Giovanni Antonio Bazzi) and Giovanni Francesco Rustici and young Francesco Melzi, whose parents had a manor house at Vaprio, Milan. Such artists as Giampietrino, Bernardino Lanino, Cesare da Sesto, Cesare Magni, Martino Piazza da Lodi and Bernardino Luini are also regarded as members of the circle of Leonardo, while Giampietrino and Cesare da Sesto are represented as pupils in monument to Leonardo at Milan.

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