LEONARDO DA VINCI IS REALLY AND TRULY THE RENAISSANCE MAN OF THE AGES. A man of all trade: designer, architect, inventor, geologist, mathematician, sculptor, astronomer, botanist, civil and military engineer, landscaper, anatomist, musician (inventor of musical instruments), singer, art critic and of course, master painter. However, the most surprising thing of all, with all his great accomplishments, unlike the other Renaissance Man, Michaelangelo, he had never been portrayed in a modern day movie? Why is that? He's been copied and imitated for sure. So, I dug in his colorful background.
He was born in 1452 in the little village of Vinci in Italy. His father, Piero, saw the boy genius in him and took him to Florence to work and study with the painter Verrochio. His first completed work as a student was the Baptism of Christ and people thought that the angel was the best part of the painting. He soon painted better than his teacher and was admitted to the painters' guild at the age of 20. His many activities prevented him from completing many paintings. In his early years in Milan, he did complete a painting, The Madonna of the Rocks (Louvre). He also painted a mural, The Last Supper, in the dining hall of the monastery of Santa Maria della Grazie. The way in which he shows the complex emotions in the hearts of Christ's disciples in masterful. Many critics consider it one of th greatest painting in the world - a testament to his genius.
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| Original Mural (c. 1495-1498) |
Leonardo may be dyslexic like most geniuses are. He wrote most of his notes backwards with is left hand. He then read them with a mirror. There are known 7,000 pages of his ideas, sketches, and inventions from his notebooks in existence. His ideas of aerial screws led to the development of propeller and helicopter. His sketches of flying machine, machine gun and metal projectiles are forecast of things to come.
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Computer animation
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In 1499, French troops seized Milan. Leonardo returned to Florence where he painted a portrait of the wife of a merchant named Giocondo. People liked especially the painting for its simplicity, dignity and notably her mysterious and enigmatic smile. The mountain landscape in the background seems to lead the looker to infinity. The La Giocanda o Mona Lisa painting now hangs in the wall of the Louvre in Paris. Taking photo of the precious painting is now allowed
He returned to Milan in 1506, this time in the service of Louis XII of France. Six years later he went to Rome to work for Pope Leo X and planned the designs and constructions of Saint Peter's Church and other buildings in the Vatican. Several French kings admired Leonardo and invited him to live in France. He finally accepted Francis I's invitation in 1516 He lived like a king in the small castle of Cioux, near Amboise.
The great artist died on May 2, 1519.
Da Vinci's painting of Madonna Litta (c.1490-1491) Hermitage, St. Petersburg
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Previous Publication 4/21/06 ALT MSN Groups (defunct)
Web Page: Lab Excursion
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Come and see the Leonardo Da Vinci Exhibits
at
The Museum of Science and Industry
in Chicago
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