
& In this painting of Leonardo&s there was a smile so pleasing that it seemed divine rather than human& Often called "the first art historian" Vasari writes with delight on the lives of Leonardo & other celebrated Renaissance artists Introducing Little Black Classics 80 books for Penguin&s 80th birthday Little Black Classics celebrate the huge range & diversity of Penguin Classics with books from around the world & across many centuries They take us from a balloon ride over Victorian London to a garden of blossom in Japan from Tierra del Fuego to 16th-century California & the Russian steppe Here are stories lyrical & savage; poems epic & intimate; essays satirical & inspirational; & ideas that have shaped the lives of millions Giorgio Vasari (1511-1574) Vasari&s works available in Penguin Classics are Lives of the Artists Volume I & Volume II