Marcus Chen
Leonardo da Vinci is one of the most renowned painters in the history of Western art. He is best known for his paintings, including the world-famous Mona Lisa, The Last Supper, and Lady with an Ermine. Da Vinci was also a draughtsman, engineer, scientist, theorist, sculptor, and architect, and his notebooks reveal his spirit of scientific inquiry and mechanical inventiveness. He is considered a true Renaissance man, epitomising the Renaissance humanist ideal.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Full Name | Leonardo di ser Piero da Vinci |
| Date of Birth | 15 April 1452 |
| Place of Birth | Anchiano, near Vinci, Tuscany, Republic of Florence (Italy) |
| Date of Death | 2 May 1519 |
| Place of Death | Cloux (now Clos-Lucé), France |
| Known As | Painter, draughtsman, engineer, scientist, theorist, sculptor, architect, inventor, and Renaissance man |
| Notable Works | The Mona Lisa, The Last Supper, Salvator Mundi, Vitruvian Man, Lady with an Ermine, St. John the Baptist, The Virgin of the Rocks, The Virgin and Child with Saint Anne |
| Legacy | One of the greatest painters in the history of Western art and the founder of the High Renaissance |
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What You'll Learn
Leonardo da Vinci's fame
Leonardo da Vinci is widely recognised as one of the greatest painters in the history of Western art. He is often credited as the founder of the High Renaissance, a period during which he produced some of the most influential paintings in the Western canon.
Da Vinci's fame during his own lifetime was such that the King of France held him in high esteem, and it is said that the King supported him in his old age and held him in his arms as he died.
Da Vinci's most famous painting is the Mona Lisa, which is regarded as the world's most famous individual artwork. The painting's fame is partly due to the mysterious quality of the subject's smile, achieved through the use of sfumato, a technique that employs subtle gradations of light and shadow. The Last Supper, a wall painting depicting a sequential narrative from the Gospels, is also one of da Vinci's most renowned works and is the most reproduced religious painting of all time.
In addition to his artistic achievements, da Vinci is revered for his technological ingenuity and scientific discoveries. He conceptualised flying machines, armoured fighting vehicles, solar power, and even a type of ratio machine that could be used in an adding machine. As a military engineer, he invented advanced and deadly weapons, including an early example of a machine gun and a large crossbow.
Da Vinci's notebooks, filled with drawings and notes on a variety of subjects, also contribute to his enduring fame. These notebooks reveal a spirit of scientific inquiry and a mechanical inventiveness that were centuries ahead of his time.
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The Mona Lisa
Leonardo da Vinci is considered one of the greatest painters in the history of Western art. He is often credited as the founder of the High Renaissance. Despite having fewer than 25 attributed major works, he created some of the most influential paintings in the Western canon.
The painting's novel qualities include the subject's enigmatic expression, the monumentality of the composition, the subtle modelling of forms, and the atmospheric illusionism. The painting has been traditionally considered to depict the Italian noblewoman Lisa del Giocondo, though her likeness is uncertain. It is painted in oil on a white poplar panel.
The painting's global fame and popularity partly stem from its 1911 theft by Vincenzo Peruggia, who attributed his actions to Italian patriotism—a belief that it should belong to Italy. The theft and subsequent recovery in 1914 generated unprecedented publicity for an art theft, leading to many cultural depictions, including an opera, films, and a song recorded by Nat King Cole.
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The Last Supper
Leonardo da Vinci is widely regarded as one of the greatest painters in the history of Western art. He is best known for his dramatic and expressive artwork, with his paintings capturing the public imagination for centuries.
Among his most famous works is the mural painting, 'The Last Supper'. Painted between 1494/1495 and 1498, it is considered one of the most important mural paintings in the world. It depicts the scene of the Last Supper of Jesus with the Twelve Apostles, as told in the Gospel of John. Specifically, it captures the moment after Jesus announces that one of his apostles will betray him.
The painting is housed in the refectory of the Convent or monastery of Santa Maria delle Grazie in Milan, Italy. It measures 460 cm × 880 cm (15 ft 1 in × 28 ft 10 in) and covers an end wall of the dining hall. Leonardo's patron, Ludovico Sforza, Duke of Milan, commissioned the painting as part of a plan of renovations to the church.
'The Last Supper' is renowned for its handling of space, mastery of perspective, treatment of motion, and complex display of human emotion. It is considered a pivotal work in the transition to the High Renaissance, exerting considerable influence on the development of art. The painting is dense with symbolic references, such as the identification of Judas Iscariot by his reaching towards a plate beside Christ and clutching a purse containing his reward for identifying Christ.
Despite numerous restoration attempts, little of the original painting remains today due to various environmental factors, the methods used, and intentional damage. Copies of 'The Last Supper' exist, presumed to be the work of Leonardo's assistants, and these have helped with restoration efforts.
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Other notable works
Leonardo da Vinci is widely acknowledged as one of the greatest painters in the history of Western art. However, his work extended beyond painting, and he is also known for his work as a scientist and inventor.
One of Leonardo's most famous works is the Vitruvian Man, a study of the ideal human body proportions. This drawing is considered a cultural icon. Another famous drawing is the Head of an Angel, created for The Virgin of the Rocks, which is currently in the Louvre. The Virgin of the Rocks itself is another notable work by Leonardo da Vinci. It is an oil painting on wood, created between 1491 and 1499, and later from 1506 to 1508. The painting depicts the Virgin Mary and the infant Jesus surrounded by angels in a rocky setting, and it is currently housed in the National Gallery in London.
Lady with an Ermine is another one of Leonardo's paintings, completed around 1489. It is an oil painting on a panel that portrays Cecilia Gallerani, a young woman holding a white ermine in her arms. This work is on display at the National Museum in Kraków, Poland.
Leonardo da Vinci also worked on the Adoration of the Magi, an unfinished panel painting, and was commissioned for an altar painting for the St. Bernard Chapel in the Palazzo della Signoria, which he never began. Additionally, he started work on The Battle of Anghiari in 1503, a monumental mural, but it is believed to have been destroyed or lost.
Leonardo's notebooks and journals provide valuable insights into his studies and interests. He explored a wide range of topics, including anatomy, engineering, physics, optics, aerodynamics, hydrodynamics, and more. His notebooks reveal his spirit of scientific inquiry and mechanical inventiveness, showcasing his contributions to art, such as methods for representing space, three-dimensional objects, and the human figure.
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His notebooks
Leonardo da Vinci is widely considered to be one of the greatest painters of all time. While he is best known for his dramatic and expressive artwork, he was also a scientist and an inventor, making him a true Renaissance man.
Leonardo da Vinci's notebooks are a collection of his drawings, notes, and observations. They provide a unique insight into how he saw the world and into his thoughts, work, and life, as well as his approach to painting. We know a lot about Leonardo because of these notebooks, which contain about 6,000 sheets of notes and drawings, possibly one-fifth of what he actually produced. Leonardo seems to have begun recording his thoughts in notebooks from the mid-1480s when he worked as a military and naval engineer for the Duke of Milan.
The notebooks contain sketches, diagrams, and personal notes on a wide range of subjects, including anatomy, astronomy, botany, cartography, painting, and palaeontology. Leonardo's notes are written in 16th-century Italian mirror writing, which reads in reverse and from right to left. This curious script may have been used because Leonardo was left-handed, or perhaps as a way to keep his notes private.
The five notebooks in the V&A's collection are bound into three codices called the Forster Codices. The earliest of these, Codex Forster I.2, was compiled around 1487–1490 when Leonardo was a servant of the Sforza duke in Milan. It contains notes and diagrams for devices relating to hydraulic engineering and the movement and raising of water. Leonardo was also renowned for designing elaborate devices for entertaining guests at courts and in noble houses, such as water clocks and fountains.
Leonardo da Vinci's notebooks are an excellent record of his mental processes and brilliant work. They provide insight into his approach to art and life, as well as his vast array of scientific, technological, and futuristic thoughts.
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Frequently asked questions
Yes, Leonardo da Vinci was a famous Italian painter and is considered one of the greatest painters of all time. He is known for his paintings, including the Mona Lisa, The Last Supper, and The Virgin of the Rocks.
Leonardo da Vinci's paintings were unique because of his innovative techniques for laying on the paint, his detailed knowledge of anatomy, light, botany and geology, and his use of subtle gradation of tone. He also had a special interest in physiognomy and the way humans register emotion in expression and gesture.
Leonardo da Vinci was also a sculptor, architect, designer, engineer, scientist, draftsman, and theorist. He is often described as the archetype of the "Renaissance man", a man whose infinite curiosity was matched only by his powers of invention.
