Lewis is keenly aware, if not earnestly committed to exposing, the perils of the unregulated art market, and has implicated most of the contemporary art world, from artists to dealers to oligarchs, in its monstrous inflation ... Although it is hard not to be impressed by Leonardo da Vinci, the swarm of scholars who have interpreted his manuscripts and codices can easily overstate his genius. Lewis’ portrait of the artist-engineer, however, as a 'dreamer, a doodler, and a dawdler,' is refreshingly compelling ... Lewis seems, at times, at pains to refute their claims about the painting, and to make new ones. But he’s wise enough to realise that the value of the Salvator Mundi, like it’s supposed sister Mona Lisa, is in the questions, not the answers, which are prompted by the faint smile its history evokes. Although many of his sources would disdain the idea that their work served any 'practical economic purpose,' there is no doubt that they’ve helped Ben Lewis put together a deliciously detailed, satisfying book, that is simultaneously a call for change.
The story of the world’s most expensive painting is narrated with great gusto and formidably researched detail in Ben Lewis’s book ... Lewis has a background in arts journalism and documentary films: snappy reportage of mega-buck deals is his element. But to his credit, much of the book is in a rather different mode of patient historical investigation. He examines the chequered career of the painting from its inception – probably in Milan, sometime around 1507-10 – which leads him into areas where lurk many more questions than answers.
Ben Lewis brings his combined skills to bear in The Last Leonardo, a page-turning tale about the most expensive painting of all time. It’s a story populated by characters straight out of a thriller ... The story Mr. Lewis tells is about what happens when art becomes an asset class.
A story as unbelievable as any fiction on the shelves ... Half historical fiction with Agatha Christie-style clue disclosure, and half investigative reporting with an art history educative quality, The Last Leonardo aspires to communicate many things that makes it dry in places and fascinating in others ... Yet in spite of its inconclusiveness, this painting represents a captivating look at the universal allure of Leonardo, the high roller art market, international politics, big business, curious cultural quirks . . . well, you name it, with 500 years to its seniority, the Salvator, and Lewis in his research, has hit upon just about every angle there is or could potentially be ... Lewis provides a mood which betrays how risky and emotional life much have been for Simon and Parrish during the 12 years they protected, promoted and invested in their fragile baby. We get a feel for how good Lewis is at chasing false leads and making a book out of them all. He is almost as good a salesman, and as talented a wordsmith, as the art dealers that wrangled out an eye-popping sale.
... a richly detailed mystery ... As Lewis chronicles the quest to attribute the painting to da Vinci, he uncovers an astoundingly dysfunctional world of museums, galleries, auction houses, collectors—a Russian oligarch and a Saudi prince among them—and unscrupulous middlemen, a world plagued by mistrust, suspicion, and the irresistible lure of financial rewards ... Art, greed, and stealth make for a lively tale of intrigue.
