It goes to show just how out of touch I am with the local goings on in my town that I had absolutely no idea about the Leonardo da Vinci exhibition that had been going on at my local art gallery. It’s even more shocking that I had let something about a man who is part of an era I’m so passionate about almost pass me by. So today, I took myself up the art gallery for a quick lunchtime jaunt.

The exhibition at Southampton is part of a simultaneous number of events taking place across the country at 12 different venues – all of this is to celebrate the 500th anniversary of the genius’ death. Each venue holds 12 drawings. And then in May over 200 of Da Vinci’s drawings will go on display at Buckingham Palace and Holyrood House.

As such the exhibition at Southampton City Art Gallery is very, very small. But to even be able to see such incredible works of art with my own eyes was absolutely astounding. The 12 drawings featured in Southampton’s exhibit included drawings of anatomy (including some wonderful sketches of muscles, bones and internal organs), sketches of horses and nature. At most it will take you around 15 minutes to peruse the drawings on display, but if you have any sort of interest in the life of Leonardo da Vinci and the era in which he lived, definitely try and take a few minutes out of your day to check this little exhibition out.

Leonardo: A Life in Drawing takes place between 1 Feb – 6 May 2019 at Southampton City Art Gallery. Entry is free.