The Contributions Of Leonardo Da Vinci And The Renaissance Man

Often times if a person is asked to name a profoundly known artist, artists such as Michelangelo or even the great Donatello will come to mind. These men are well- known, for they share a common characteristic: achievement. Leonardo da Vinci is also a profound artist who is known for his numerous great works throughout his lifetime. He lived and died during the time of the Renaissance, and without his many contributions, art and science today would be vastly altered. Da Vinci perfectly embodies the popular label of the “Renaissance man,” for his contributions to art, science, and the culture of the Renaissance greatly influenced all aspects of this time period. Leonardo da Vinci was born on April 15, 1452, amidst the hills of Tuscany, Italy.

He influenced many aspects of the Renaissance such as science and culture, but he is most known for his contributions to art during this time. The work of Leonardo da Vinci was always very precise and keen to details. The chapter “Innovations and Explorations,” of the book Western Civilizations accurately explains the artist's techniques when he was working to forge his many works. For example, in Leonardo’s early adulthood, he was hired in Florence to work for the Medici family as an artist. His work was brilliant, but his timing was lacking. Cole and Symes state, “Leonardo had a weakness: he worked slowly, and he had difficulty finishing anything” (Cole and Symes, 320). Due to this, many of da Vinci’s works began to deteriorate before he could even finish them. Though this may often be seen as a negative quality of da Vinci’s work, his dedication to light and perspective in his paintings changed the way artists painted. He inspired many other artists of his time to use these same techniques in their artwork. The use of perspective and lighting is evident in all of da Vinci’s paintings such as The Mona Lisa and the Last Supper. If Leonardo would have worked more swiftly, he would have never made such a great contribution to the way artists worked then and even still

He perfectly represents the Renaissance, for he made numerous contributions to art, science, and the culture of this time period. Without da Vinci’s influences, today’s society would be drastically different. Artists would not have began using light and perspective to make their works more realistic. Scientists would not have known how the human muscle and skeletal system joined to work so cohesively. The people of Europe would have never seen the many works that da Vinci used to portray his views on culture and daily life. There may be many other artists, philosophers, and authors who made significant contributions during this time, but da Vinci far outweighs all of his competitors. He influenced those around him using every mean of communication that he possibly could. Leonardo da Vinci is the perfect embodiment of a “Renaissance man,” for he used his talents to influence others through art, science, culture, and many other aspects of the