The Mother of All Application Letters
April 30, 2017 9:55 AM   Subscribe

Before becoming one of the greatest minds who ever lived, Leonardo da Vinci had to really market himself for a job at the court of Ludovico Sforza.
posted by Foci for Analysis (14 comments total) 17 users marked this as a favorite
 
need to go buff my resume a bit...
posted by twidget at 10:33 AM on April 30, 2017 [1 favorite]


I'm in the middle of rewriting my resume, so I should look into "methods for destroying every fortress or other stranglehold unless it has been founded upon a rock or so forth" myself
posted by Ray Walston, Luck Dragon at 10:39 AM on April 30, 2017 [1 favorite]


The Villa Sforza in Bellagio has one of the most gorgeous vistas of Lake Como ever. There's a heart drawn on the rock near the changing rooms.
posted by infini at 10:45 AM on April 30, 2017


Thanks for posting, OP! This is a tailored, 10-point memo on Da Vinci's brilliant military prowess (via inventions and scheming), with the briefest "Also I can execute sculpture in marble, bronze and clay. Likewise in painting, I can do everything possible as well as any other, whosoever he may be" tossed in toward the end, plus a pretty compliment to Sforza's late father (a generally well-regarded ruler, Dad had been a political appointee never recognized by Rome as a legitimate Duke of Milan), closing with an offer to demonstrate his skills at Sforza's or "whatsoever place shall please Your Excellency, to whom I commend myself with all possible humility."

All possible humility! Anyone would want to meet with this guy after reading this letter.

Da Vinci was eventually Sforza's wedding planner, too.
posted by Iris Gambol at 10:55 AM on April 30, 2017 [2 favorites]


"oh, I can paint a bit too".
posted by yhbc at 10:57 AM on April 30, 2017 [6 favorites]


I know it sounds a little out of place next to the more functional and dramatic projects, but having seen the modern reproduction, it is a very nice horse.

Shame he never got to put it together to his satisfaction.
posted by Phobos the Space Potato at 11:08 AM on April 30, 2017


Pff, this letter is all smoke and mirrors. Everyone knows Da Vinci got this job with a reference from Ezio Auditore da Firenze.
posted by selfnoise at 11:18 AM on April 30, 2017 [1 favorite]


Wow. This is surprisingly specific.

i'm amazed that Da Vinci sent in a blind request, though. I would have assumed that the usual method those days was to get a reference from a patron.
posted by steady-state strawberry at 11:32 AM on April 30, 2017


From that Wikipedia link:

Leonardo's Horse (also known as Gran Cavallo) is a sculpture that was commissioned of Leonardo da Vinci in 1482 by Duke of Milan Ludovico il Moro, but not completed. It was intended to be the largest equestrian statue in the world, a monument to the duke's father Francesco. Leonardo did extensive preparatory work for it, but produced only a clay model, which was destroyed by French soldiers when they invaded Milan in 1499, interrupting the project.

Maybe he should have spent a bit more time working on those war machines....
posted by brambleboy at 12:16 PM on April 30, 2017 [2 favorites]


Oh, good grief, I hope the translator at least got credit in the book Letters of Note published. It's shameful when people act like a text from a foreign language just magicked its way into another language.
posted by Kattullus at 2:36 PM on April 30, 2017 [4 favorites]


It doesn't look like the translator(s) got credit in the Letters of Note compilation, but I think it's the Martin Kemp/Margaret Walker translation from Leonardo on Painting.
posted by Iris Gambol at 5:50 PM on April 30, 2017 [1 favorite]


As a scientist who writes a lot of grant applications, I confess it tickles me to see that the need to emphasise military applications has not changed.
posted by forza at 8:05 PM on April 30, 2017 [7 favorites]


Double?
posted by not_the_water at 8:54 PM on April 30, 2017


*checks CV.
*checks cover letter.
*decides to reassess things.
posted by esto-again at 2:07 AM on May 1, 2017


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