Leonardo Da Vinci: The Rebirth Of Classical Learning, Culture, And Art

After the middle ages, from the fourteen hundreds to the fifteen hundreds, Western Europe experienced what some like to call a rebirth. This was the rebirth of classical learning, culture, and art. This era was known as the Renaissance. The style of art such as its paintings, decorative art, and sculptures branded this time period. Many of the works of art during this era were religious pieces. During today’s time, we view them as amazing pieces of art. However, during the renaissance these were used as devotional pieces. Much of the works were donated as altarpieces for the Catholic Mass. In addition to this, more middleclass people were buying art for their home during this time. This was to imitate the aristocracy. Although there were some

Da Vinci is considered one of the three creators of High Renaissance Art. Da Vinci was born in Vinci, a town near Florence. He received one of the best art educations a person could receive growing up during the Renaissance. He worked in the workshop of the prominent Florentine sculptor, goldsmith and painter, Andrea del Verrochio. Da Vinci learned a great majority of his skill in Florence. This included, a variety of technical skills, drawing, sculpting, painting, metal working and modelling. After his apprentice, Verrochio, began focusing solely on sculpting, Da Vinci stayed with him for a short time before opening his own workshop. However, even after opening his own workshop, Da Vinci continued working with Verrochio. Da Vinci spent much of his life as an artist trying to focus on making his works look realistic and lifelike. His use of chiaroscuro and sfumato allowed him to create realistic, three dimensional effects. However, much of Da Vinci’s realism is owed to his study of the human body. While working with Verrochio, he began focusing on the human body. Yet his real focus with the human body began when he started dissecting human corpses at hospitals in Florence, Rome and Milan. For the most part, Da Vinci was the first artist to study the anatomy of the human body in men, women, and children. This is where some of his most famous sketches derived from. Not only did he focus on the

The Mona Lisa is said to be a portrait of a rich Florentine merchant. For some reason though, the Mona Lisa was never delivered to its investor. So Da Vinci carried it with him when he went to go work for King Francis I. The Mona Lisa was painted between 1503 and 1519 while Da Vinci was living in Florence. Da Vinci’s use of sfumato makes the Mona Lisa’s hair, curves, and clothing stick out more. Sfumato is the smooth transition from one color to the next using ultra-subtle tonal gradations. Sfumato is mainly used with oil paintings. This is because the paint is easy to manipulate. The use of sfumato is clearly present in the contouring of the face. The background of the painting was created using the aerial or atmospheric perspective. Aerial perspective is technique used to create distance in the painting by modifying the hue and distinctiveness. The objects seemed to fade away in the distance. Many artists use more of the blue colors as objects get further away. As many people have noticed, it appears in the Mona Lisa that she does not have eyelashes or eyebrows. Though some say that Da Vinci just didn’t paint them, this is not the case, after further examination, it was determined that they were painted and it is likes the pigment he used for them wore off over time. He chose the sitters pyramid pose for the Mona Lisa. The sitters pyramid pose is the modeling