“Baldassare Castiglione, an author and courtier who knew Leonardo in Rome, described him as one “of the world’s finest painters, who despises the art for which he has so rare a talent and has set himself to learn philosophy [meaning the sciences].”18 He received one commission from the pope but apparently did not finish it. As Leonardo lingered over the process of distilling the varnish he planned to use to coat the painting when it was complete, the pope complained, “Alas, this man will never get anything done, for he is thinking about the end before he begins.”19 Isaacson, Walter. Leonardo da Vinci (p. 457). Simon & Schuster. Kindle Edition. ”
