The leaf as mother; situating figures in light
How a leaf shelters its branch and fruit, and how to place figures under different kinds of light
In dark ink at the top and red chalk below, this page joins a note on plant growth with a note on painting. Leonardo observes that every branch and fruit is born above the base of its leaf, which shelters it like a mother by giving it rainwater and dew and shielding it from the sun's excess heat. A second, red-chalk note headed 'On placement' reminds the painter that a figure requires different light and shadow depending on whether it stands in a dark place, a bright place, under evening or cloudy light, or under the universal light of the sunlit air.
On this page
The leaf shelters its branch and fruit like a mother
Every branch and every fruit is born above the birthplace of its leaf. The leaf shelters it like a mother, offering it the water of the rains and the moisture of the dew that falls at night, and often taking from it the excess heat of the sun's rays.
Situating figures according to the kind of light
Remember to situate the figures, because one kind of light and shadow is wanted for a thing in a dark place with a particular light, another for a thing in a bright place under the particular light of the sun, another for a thing in a dark place under the universal light of evening or of cloudy weather, and another again under the universal light of the air illuminated by the sun.