Olympic visitors also lined up to view art

The Vancouver Art Gallery drew 95,000 visitors over the 17 days of the 2010 Olympic Winter Games, the highest attendance in its history.

Visitors were lured by free admission, courtesy of the B.C. government, and two blockbuster shows Leonardo da Vinci: The Mechanics of Man and Visions of British Columbia: A Landscape Manual.

Lineups wrapped around Robson Square as thousands of visitors toured Vancouver. The fourth floor of the art gallery housed the B.C. Pavilion for the Games.

Leonardo da Vinci: The Mechanics of Man, showcases Leonardo da Vinci's artistic and scientific investigations of the human body, featuringhundreds of sketches. It is on loan from the Royal Collection in the U.K.

Visions of British Columbia: A Landscape Manual is an exhibit focusing on British Columbia art and artists, drawn mainly from the gallery's own collection.

Free admission is also being offered during the 2010 Paralympic Winter Games, March 12 to 21.