When you think of Leonardo da Vinci, you probably think of the Mona Lisa. Leonardo da Vinci is one of the most famous artists in the world. But he is much more than that. Indeed he never thought of himself as an artist. When he sent a letter to the ruler of Milan describing his strengths when he was looking for work, he listed 10 different skills. And almost as an afterthought, he mentioned he could also paint. The reason his artworks are so realistic and detailed is that he invested much of his time in the study of science. da Vinci was born in a village near Vinci, just outside Florence, in 1452.
The illegitimate son of a farmer’s daughter and a prominent lawyer. Although he didn’t receive any formal education, his artistic ability was clear from a very early age. When he was 15, he studied under the acclaimed artist Andrea del Verrocchio in Florence. When da Vinci helped Verrochio paint an angel in the “Baptism of Christ”, the story goes that his version was so much better than his master’s that Verrochio vowed never to pick up a paintbrush again. da Vinci was a notoriously slow painter and many of his works were never finished. Only about two dozen survive.
A drop in the bucket compared to other artists. Van Gogh left more than 2,000 works. da Vinci wasn’t just interested in how the human body or nature looked on a canvas. He wanted to know why they appeared as they did. He was able to give the Mona Lisa that mysterious look on her face because he studied all the muscles involved in smiling. He devoted a lot of his time to studying human anatomy. If you wanted to learn about human anatomy in the 1500s, there was no easy way to do so, no medical textbooks and, of course, no way to google search an image. So he studied the only way he could — by examining corpses. Hospitals were keen to support his artistic research and gave him access to cadavers. He dissected over 30 bodies in his lifetime and filled thousands of pages with notes and detailed drawings.
If you’re having trouble reading this, it’s because da Vinci had a habit of writing backward. He liked to go from right to left. He was left-handed. So some have speculated this would have stopped his ink from smudging. His writing can be read normally only if viewed in a mirror. He probably wouldn’t have done so if he had any intention of publishing his notes. His depictions of the body are beautiful. And for the most part, accurate. So accurate that professors can actually use his drawings to teach anatomy. One of his most famous works that perfectly illustrates the fusion of art and science is the Vitruvian man which depicts the proportions of the human body according to Vitruvius — a Roman architect. The man’s outstretched arms are equal to his height, which is true for most people.
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Originally published at https://tips1key.blogspot.com.
