Leonardo da Vinci was a man of art, science and innovation during the Renaissance Era. Although many of Leonardo’s paintings were unfinished or lost, we could see his influence in perspective, light and shadows, and primary colors in his paintings. To paint more realistic paintings, he first learned as an apprentice to Andrea del Verrocchio, a leading Florentine painter and sculptor. After 6 years he became an independent master and developed his own style of painting.
In his notebooks Leonardo considered black, white, red, yellow, green, and blue to be the primary colors which were applied over his underpaintings. He also discovered that a shadow does not show the true color; so to create depth and a more 3-dimensional feel, he added
shadows on and around the objects and images with darker colors. This affect lead to the technique of chiaroscuro, a way to define forms through contrasts of light and shadow. Leonardo also began to set his paintings in a setting and was one of the first to use perspective lines to also give depth to his paintings. Leonardo da Vinci added slight facial expressions and small details to add thought to his paintings. He wrote, “Painting is poetry that is seen rather than felt, and poetry is painting that is felt rather than seen.”
Leonardo da Vinci was a famous painter, sculptor, and inventor that lived from 1452-1519. He was born in a small Italian town of Vinci and lived on a small estate that his father owned. Leonardo kept the name of the town that he was born in for his last name. Since his mother did not marry his father, he could not inherit his father’s land, nor did he have much going for him as a wealthy businessman. When people think of Leonardo da Vinci, they mostly associate him with art and paintings, such as his famous Mona Lisa and The Last Supper. Leonardo believed that art was correlated to science and nature. Da Vinci was largely self-educated and he filled endless notebooks with examinations and suppositions about pursuits from aeronautics to anatomy.
These paintings are famous for a variety of qualities which have been much imitated by students and discussed at great length by aficionados and critics (“Leonardo Da Vinci.” Biography Online.) Among the qualities that make Leonardo's work unique are the innovative techniques which he used in laying on the paint, and his detailed knowledge of anatomy, light, botany and geology. These combined with his interest in physiognomy and the way in which humans register emotion in expression and gesture and his innovative use of the human form in figurative composition, blend with subtle gradation of tone (“Simplifying a Genius.”). All these techniques are evident his most famous painted works: the Mona Lisa, the Last Supper and the Virgin of the Rocks (“The Secret Revealed: How to Look at Italian Renaissance Painting.”
Though the Renaissance era included all of Europe, Italy was the cradle of the movement. The cities of Florence, Rome and Venice were of great importance to this period. Major artists created art mainly in these three. As the center of Italy, Rome held the residence of the Pope and many other important factors. Throughout history, the Roman Catholic Church was very insistent on promoting their ideas. During this time, they used artists and their creativity to promote the Bible and other aspects of their beliefs. Artists were paid, or commissioned by patrons (often the Pope) to create art they wanted. One of the most ambitious patrons was Pope Julius II, who realized the impact visual images had on people’s ideas (Kleiner, 599). Pope Julius II was called the warring Pope, because he often went and involved himself in wars. He also held very humanistic ideas. Because of this, Michelangelo’s relationship to Pope Julius II was very different from his relationship with Pope Leo X, who succeeded Julius II. Julius, because of his adaptions to humanistic thoughts, he let Michelangelo express himself to the fullest, even when forcing him to paint the Sistine Chapel. Leo X, however, was very critical of everything Michelangelo set out upon. This resulted a strained relationship, and eventually abandonment of projects that were supposed to be completed. It is clear that Pope Julius II had a liking for Michelangelo, while the Medici’s looked on him as a type of lowly artist subject to their will.
Leonardo Da Vinci could be argued as one of the most famous persons in the Renaissance Era and one of the greatest painters to ever live. Leonardo is talented and has made many contribution throught his life. He did so many things such as painting, anatomy , mechanics, and architecture. And he is one of the reasons why the Renaissance era could be regarded at one of the greatest time periods in history.
During my second time visiting the museum, I looked at paintings from the 15th and 19th centuries. Two of the art works that I choose is “The Story of Joseph” from the Renaissance period and “The Marketplace” from the modern art period. Both of these paintings were from different time periods but they were also very similar in content and style.
The Renaissance was a time of innovation and wondrous achievements from legendary social figures. The spirit of the Renaissance was the concept of humanism, which many of these figures clearly portrayed in their works. Prior to the Renaissance, the citizens of Italy were suffering and were provided a new life in some ways with the arrival of the Renaissance A very famous group of Renaissance men consists of Leonardo Da Vinci, Raphael, Michelangelo, and Donatello. These men accomplished many things in art and are even attributed for modernizing the art industry as a whole. Although they were slightly different in their respective fields of art, Leonardo, Raphael, Michelangelo, and Donatello shared one common factor in that they were all humanists,
The word renaissance means rebirth in French. Later historians would claim and label era of the renaissance by the rebirth of approach and standards based on in traditional antiquity. The renaissance was from 1420 to 1600 and it was both historical and cultural. Some of the most notable events that occurred during this period was the end of the hundred-year war between England and France, Christopher Columbus heads for the new world, Ottaviano Petrucci publishes the Odhecaton which is the first book of music printed, Henry VIII breaks with Rome, declares himself the head of the church of England, and William Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet. However, there are other countless events that took place this time period.
Leonardo da Vinci was an Italian Renaissance man that was born in 1452 and lived to 1519. He was a true renaissance man is regarded as one of the greatest minds of the renaissance era, displaying skills in numerous diverse areas of study. While he is most famous for his paintings such as the Mona Lisa and the Last Supper, Leonardo is also renowned in the fields of civil engineering, chemistry, geometry, mathematics, mechanical engineering, optics, and physics, Making his biggest contributions to mathematics and engineering through his amazing inventions. Leonardo da Vinci was very far ahead of his time which is why most of his inventions were not made practical until someone reinvented later in time, when technology caught up to his ideas.
The rebirth of culture that took place in Europe from the 14th through the mid 17th centuries, it was based on the rediscovery of literature, art and learning in Greece and Rome. Renaissance originated from French, mid-French. The five major themes of the Renaissance were humanism, secularism, individualism, rationalism, and virtu. It was based on arts and humanities, religion, individuals trying to stand out, science, the church’s authority, and being the best at things.
The Italian Renaissance included some of the greatest artists we have ever seen from Leonard Da Vinci, to Michelangelo, and Raphael. The Renaissance took place from the late thirteenth to sixteenth centuries and is know as the ‘rebirth’. The idea that the rebirth of the arts after being asleep for a thousand years is an amazing thing to grasp. This time brought back light to liberal arts, which were on the brink of being extinct. (Murray 2) What is also interesting about art during this time was that most of the art had Christian in its roots, for example, Botticelli’s The Allegory of Spring (Faure 1) is said to have had a Christian interpretation. (Murray) “Every Italian artist, willingly took the title of architect, sculptor, and painter” (Faure 2). At the beginning of the fifteenth century, the Italian painters had asked the Flemish painters for their secret techniques because the Italians felt like the language of painting was one that was always meant for them. (Faure 4) The sculptors claimed their inspiration from ancient works. Lastly the Renaissance introduced idea of individualism, which helped the Italians get away from everything that was going on during that time. Art during the Renaissance included painting, sculpting and architecture, all of which were an important part in expressing the idea of individualism and making art what is is today.
Leonardo da Vinci was born on April 15, 1452 in Vinci a Tuscan hill town in the territory of the republic of Florence, son of wealthy Messer Piero Fruosini di Antonio da Vinci, a Florentine legal notary and Caterina, a peasant. His full name was Leonardo di ser Pierro da Vinci, the title ser indicated that his father was a gentleman. There is not too much known about his early years only that he lived in the home of his mother until 1457 and then in the household of his father in the small town of Vinci.
Art has gone through many significant developments throughout history. The most important turning point was the renaissance. Art took a huge turn before the 1500’s and even after. The Renaissance has assisted the world of art in breaking away from a classic structure and shaping it to what it is day. Prior to this cultural rebirth, artworks were mostly not made to scale. Paintings were unrealistic and disproportionate. Religious figures seemed to be the focus of many works. The Renaissance changed the old social context of art by introducing humanism, new themes and techniques.
It is agreed that the Renaissance was a period of great art and architectural feats and ingenuity, during which artists looked back to the classical art of Greece and Rome from which to draw inspiration. This influence can easily be seen in the many paintings and sculpture that came out of the Renaissance. However, the conservative nature of the period, the subject matter, and the restrictions imposed upon artists of that time kept the Renaissance from truly becoming a return to the classics of Greece and Rome.
Leonardo da Vinci is one of the most well-known geniuses in human history. This man masters knowledge of all kind: painting, architecture, music, geology, philosophy, biology, math, physics, chemistry, etc. His probably most famous painting, Mona Lisa, fascinated millions of people around the world and the amazing and mysterious details in the painting attracted a number of scientists and scholars to devote their whole career in studying them. Born and lived in Italian Renaissance age, which is a period of time when arts flourished and knowledge was valued, Leonardo was surrounded by many great contemporary artists and a perfect creative environment. These favorable factors supported him to fully exercise his talents.
Leonardo da Vinci is one of the most special, famous artists of all time. He painted the famous Mona Lisa and The Last Supper. He is an inspiration to all artists around the world. He was born in Italy on April 15th, 1542, and died on May 12, 1519. He makes about 15 paintings per year, which can be a lot for an artist. He was also an architect and inventor. His paintings were museums best features, and they were quite a sight to see. Madeleine L’engle chose Leonardo da Vinci because he isn’t someone to forget, and he is an inspiring figure.