I do find it interesting that folk think Renaissance art is realistic.
I’m being a little glib, but the truth is that we are still looking at hyper-idealised bodies.
The main difference,I suspect, is the use of perspective rather than drawing on a flat plane. In a way it took a leap of imagination to make things look more “realistic” whilst sculpture was merely (again, said with a certain smirk) just mimicking what the artist could see and feel in the real world.
That is to say that sculpture is reproduction whilst drawing is representation, and with representation you need to be able to take some pretty big leaps for both the artist and the viewer to work these things out.
The big brain move was to ask them first, thereby proving you wanted to use their IP.
If he had just faked it anyway without asking he might have got away with it.
Genius strategist.