Leonardo Da Vinci – A Phenomenon

Da Vinci is one of the most celebrated figures in the history of art. Not merely

an artist, he was also an engineer, a mathematician, an inventor and a

botanist. He was also a splendid musician; evident from the fact that he made

into the court of Milan as a Lyre player not an artist. The man is epitome of

brilliance when it comes to his work. His arts, innovations and inventions are

one of a kind. Much is not known about him or his works and at the same time

far too much is known about him; so much so that it’s clearly impossible to

separate the myth from the reality.

www.biography.com

Biography:

Leonardo da Vinci was born to Ser Piero Fruosino di Antonio da Vinci, a notary

public from Florence, and Catarina, a farm worker, near Anchiano in Tuscany,

Italy on the fifteenth of April, 1452 (Wiki, Leonardo da Vinci, 2015). Since his

parents were not married to each other, Leonardo was brought up by his

father before he moved to Vinci, Italy, at the age of 5, where he lived with his

paternal uncles and grandparents.

Da Vinci did not attend school, but did begin an art apprenticeship with famed

artist Andrea del Verrocchio in Florence when he turned 14, where he gained

skills in a wide variety of arts ranging from drawing to sculpting. His earliest

known artwork was a drawing by pen of the Arno valley in 1473. He joined the

Guild of St. Luke at the age of 20 but his new, independent workshop did not

receive a commission until 5 years later, which was for an altar piece for a

chapel in the Palazzo Vecchio. In 1481, he received another commission for a

painting from the monks of San Donato a Scopeto, but left Florence without

completing either of these jobs because of criminal charges he faced.

In 1482, da Vinci was contacted by the ruler of Florence to create a lyre (a kind

of Greek harp) out of silver as a peace offering to the acting ruler of Milan at

the time, Ludovico Sforza. After completing this task, da Vinci sent a letter

containing innovative designs for war machinery to Sforza, asking for a job in

Milan. The designs for devices such as manned armoured tanks got him

employed by Sforza for 17 years.

During his stay in Milan, da Vinci studied the sciences in depth, with a great

emphasis on human anatomy, dissecting human corpses in order to draw

detailed diagrams of various body parts. He also gained knowledge in physics,

botany and aeronautics. His famous works were made during this period,

including Virgin of the Rocks (1483), The Last Supper (1495) and the Vitruvian

Man. He was working on a 16-foot tall bronze statue of Francesco Sforza,

founder of the Sforza ruling clan, when the French invaded Milan, forcing him

to flee in 1499. (Biography.com, 2015)

He returned to Florence in 1502 where he worked briefly as an engineer in the

armed forces of Pope Alexander VI. He surveyed military construction sites and

drew maps for the army before he painted the very well-known Mona Lisa in

1503, whose subject is as much a mystery as its smile.

Da Vinci returned to Milan in 1506 to work for the French rulers he had fled

from in 1499. He devoted more time to studying the sciences in this period and

was commissioned by Trivulzio, the French ruler, to build a statue to stand

atop his grave, a task that was never finished. After Trivulzio’s death, difficult

times followed, causing da Vinci to travel to Rome in 1513, where he was given

residence in the Vatican and a monthly income by the brother of the new Pope

Leo X.

In this era, very few tasks were given to him so he pursued mathematical

studies. In 1515, he was given the job of ‘Premier Painter, Architect and

Engineer to the King’ by the French king, Francis I, and he moved to a place

near the king’s summer house in Amboise before he died on the second of

May, 1519. His estate was inherited by Melzi, a worker in da Vinci’s studio and

his personal assistant.

Interesting Facts about da Vinci:-

1. Leonardo destroyed most of his work. Hardly was any of his work fully

completed.

2. Leonardo was an eccentric and a procrastinator. At times he would paint

continuously for hours at others he would only make two or three strokes

the entire day.

3. Leonardo was left-handed. As a matter of fact he was ambidextrous i.e. he

could write with both hands… And at the same time! He was also dyslexic

meaning he could write in reverse order i.e. he was an expert at mirror

writing. So with left hand da Vinci drew and with his right he wrote in

reverse order and he did both simultaneously.

4. Leonardo designed many “weapons of war”. He was the first to design an

armoured car, a scythed chariot, repeating rifle, a pile driver, a revolving

crane, a pulley, a lagoon dredge, and a flying ship.

5. War wasn’t his only expertise. He also designed/sketched many

“constructive” objects such as parachute, helicopter, aeroplane, swinging

bridge, paddleboat and motorcar.

6. His inventions, considering his era, are dazzling. He invented the bicycle 300

years prior its availability to the public. He was also the one to invent

hydraulic pumps and inflatable tubes (to help float on water).

7. Leonardo was the first one to explain why the sky is blue. He was also the

first to study in detail the phases of moon.

8. One of the reasons he dug fresh corpses out of their graves was to find out

where exactly is the soul located in the body!

Mona Lisa:

Leonardo da Vinci’s most celebrated work is his masterpiece – Mona Lisa.

Mona or Monna, compact form of Madonna, is a highly respectable salutation

in Italian meaning Madame or milady. The Italians prefer to use the spellings

“Monna” since “Mona” is a disrespectful word in some accents. The most

probable subject of the painting is a French woman Lisa Gherardini, the wife of

Francesco del Giocondo, a wealthy Florentine silk merchant. This is logical

since del Giocondo himself commissioned the painting. Nevertheless, it has

been a subject of great controversies.

Da Vinci started the painting in 1503 and completed it in 1506. Later he kept

refining it till 1517. It is an oil painting on a white poplar panel. The size of this

portrait is 30 inches x 21 inches and weighs only 18 pounds. It is present in

Louvre Museum Paris since 1797. The painting being priceless definitely needs

to be guarded. It is placed behind a bulletproof glass compartment. The

temperature and humidity of the compartment is also controlled to preserve

the masterpiece inside.

The painting was one of the first to depict the sitter in front of an imaginary

background. While portraying the colour perspectives through the painting, da

Vinci keeps the distant background more bluer which is aesthetically quite

pleasing.

Sfumato is a hallmark of Da Vinci’s art, a concordant invention. Sfumato is a

hallmark of Da Vinci’s art, a concordant invention. Sfumato is derived from an

Italian word “fumo” which means “fume”. So “sfumato” means “something

that is not clear i.e. vague or blurred”. Sfumato, one of the four Renaissance

techniques, is an artistic technique in which the artist doesn’t draw any visible,

distinguishing boundaries. Da Vinci added blurred shadow edges to the

painting. In fact the subject face and body is enclosed within a shadow and yet

it appears edgy. The “figure” is almost merging with the background in “colors”

and “tones”. The absence of boundaries is very obvious in two regions

primarily, the corners of the eyes and the corners of the face.

Mona Lisa is sitting facing slightly away from the user. Furthermore her right

arm lies across her stomach. It was not a very common aspect of those days.

Having stolen in 1911 from Louvre, the masterpiece caused much stir across

the globe. Previously it had been taken to France by Napoleon and the very

reason, the “celebrated art-piece” art-thief, Peruggia gave was the patriotic

concern as he wanted to bring it back to Italy.

Despite the fact that no one till date has been able to figure out the real cause

of its fame. There have been a couple of opinions in this regard. To quote a

great critic Cuzin, it would be wholesome to say, “The subject in Mona Lisa is

not beautiful and painting does not have much color. The painting does not

have much to offer to our visual delight yet it is so famous. The problem is that

She has become so famous that we “do not see her” anymore. The actual thing

is to see the “Mona Lisa” for the first time, as if it had not been seen or known

before.

Interesting Facts and belief:-

1. The subject of the painting is a highly debatable matter. Although most

believe it to be Lisa Gherardini but some say that it is a modified self

portrait of the artist.

2. Leonardo da Vinci spent almost ten years just to paint the lips of Mona Lisa!

3. A French scientist, Pascal Cotte, discovered that there is another hidden

portrait behind the external one by Light Amplification Method (LAM). After

reconstructing the layers found underneath the surface of the Mona Lisa,

Cotte claims that she is a totally different woman. Studies have found that

there are actually three different layers before the current layer. In one

version has her hands are holding her arms not the chair in front of her. In

another, Mona Lisa’s smile is not an element of the painting. (McAloon,

2015)

4. The fact that Mona Lisa doesn’t have eye-brows is also a very intriguing

matter. Some say that in those days it was a fashion for women to pluck out

all there facial hair (eye-brows and eye-lashes). However some researchers,

like Pascal Cotte, claim that originally she had eye-brows as well as eye-

lashes. The most plausible explanation is that they got wiped away when

the picture was being cleaned since these were very dim to begin with.

5. Cotte also discovered many other things with Laser techniques. These

include: (Bryner, 2007)

i. The presence of Lace on her dress.

ii. The presence of an invisible (transparent) veil on her head.

iii. The interchanged positions of her left index and middle finger.

iv. Her smallest left finger was never completed.

v. A rock was once thrown at the painting which result in a permanent

damage hence the area around her left elbow was repaired.

vi. The blotch marks on corners of eyes and face are “varnish accidents” not

sfumato!

vii. The blanket atop Lisa’s knees also covers her stomach in the lower layers.

The Last Supper:-

This is one of the most wondrous paintings ever and is also one of Da Vinci’s

masterpieces. The painting was commenced around 1495 and was completed

(apparently) in three years. This is evidently a very long time. Many claim that

this is due to the artist’s habit of slacking off. It is stated that at times he would

work continuously for the entire day. At others he would not make a stroke for

days. When complained to he responded that the delay was owing to the fact

that he could not find the right “face” to depict Judas. (Leonardo/Supper)

Wikipedia da Vinci: The Last Supper

The painting depicts a biblical scene, mentioned in the Gospel of John, of the

Last Supper of Jesus before his “attempted” crucifixion. The painting captures

the exact moment when Jesus told his disciples at the Supper that one of them

would betray him. (Gospel of John, 13:21) Horror and shock is quite obvious on

their faces.

The painting contains twelve visible apostles. These 12 apostles (from viewer’s

right) include Simon, Thaddeus, Matthew, Philip, James the Greater, Thomas,

John, Peter, Judas, Andrew, James the Lesser, Bartholomew. In biblical text,

Judas is the man who betrayed his master. The picture depicts him as a vicious

and evil looking man. He is the only one with his elbow placed on the table. He

is carrying a sac in his hands which people believe is payment given to him for

his consent to desertion. (Puchko, 2015)

The painting is a kind of mural painting i.e. painted directly on wall. It is

painted on a wall of Monastery of “Santa Maria delle Grazie” in Milan, Italy.

The original painting is roughly 15 inches tall and 29 inches wide i.e. a

landscape view.

The painting is painted with the help of “tempera” – a special kind of paint

made with an emulsion of substance like egg with water – on a stone wall. The

traditional method of painting on stone walls is called “fresco” which is actually

painting with water-colours on a surface lapped with “wet” plaster. The former

was an experiment by da Vinci but was not very successful. Da Vinci did not

agree to the latter method because it required swiftness, not one of his strong

points. (Suttle, 2015)

Within a century much of the painting started to flake off due to

environmental aspects. Quite a few times in history renovation attempts have

been made (latest being completed in 1999 (Wiki, The Last Supper, 2015)); so-

much-so that the painting can hardly be claimed as a Leonardo’s handiwork

now. Apart from this, the 2nd World War was another factor accounting to the

distortion of the image. The painting itself was not damaged but much of the

building it is situated in was razed.

If observed carefully, one can see that a great piece at the central bottom part

of the painting is missing. This happened as a result of maintenance work at

the convent in which a door was installed at that part of the wall.

Interesting Facts and Beliefs:-

1. There is an interesting belief that all the disciples in the painting have been

modelled after a real person. Many claim that James the Lesser is the self-

portrait of Da Vinci. (Suttle, 2015) Others claim that Judas, in the painting,

was imaged after a highly repugnant looking criminal. (Puchko, 2015)

2. Another interesting claim is that there is a “hidden” 13th apostle in the

image, a short man in the shadows between Peter and Andrew. Further

they claim that John as depicted in the painting is not John but is actually

Mary Magdalene (a staunch believer). (Shea, 2015) Hence this 13th

mysterious man ought to be John.

Virgin of the Rocks:-

The Virgin of the Rocks (also called the Madonna of the Rocks) is one of the

masterpieces of Leonardo Da Vinci. He made this portrait in the period

between 1483 and 1488. He made use of the oil on panel technique to make

this.

There are two version of this artwork. One is the Louvre version which is

thought to be entirely of Da Vinci. It is present in Paris. Dimensions of this

portrait are 78in x 48in (roughly 199cm x 122cm). Second one is the London

version. Da Vinci made it with the help of his assistant. It is present in National

Gallery, London for exhibition. The size of this portrait is 75in x 45in (roughly

189cm x 120 cm). (Wiki, The Last Supper, 2015)

Paris (Louvre) Verion London (National Gallery) Version

This artwork was made on belief that Christ was conceived without original sin

on Mary’s part. This was a burning issue at that time and Leonardo was

required to convey virgin’s purity.

Characters of this portrait are Madonna (Holy Mary), Archangel Gabriel, Jesus

Christ and infant John the Baptist. (He is referred to as Yahya in Arabic. He was

son of Zakariyah and a Prophet of God). This painting depicts important story

of that time that Jesus met John the Baptist who is in protection of Archangel

Uriel. Both were on the move to eradicate killing of the innocent. As John paid

tribute to Christ he was blessed and baptism was expected.

Plants in the portrait were taken from nature. Leonardo carefully selected

them from the nature according to their symbolic meanings like Cymbal aria is

meant for virtue and constancy. Heart-shaped leaves represent love. Palm tree

is a symbol of victory. Dove plants beside Madonna Mary’s face represent Holy

Spirit. This portrait is a beautiful depiction of thinking of a society on a plate.

Interesting Facts:-

1. Both the London version and the Paris version are slightly different. In the

London version, Uriel is not “pointing”.

2. The theme of the painting being a highly disputed religious topic created a

lot of fuss and conflict which lasted for a long time. (History, 2012)

Portrait of a Man in Red Chalk:-

Leonardo da Vinci was considered as the greatest artist of his era. The

portrait of a man in red chalk is supposed to be a self-portrait of Leonardo da

Vinci. It has also been criticised by a number of scholars and historians that this

painting was not made by Da Vinci himself.

The painting is present in “Biblioteca Reale” (Royal Library) Turin, Italy. The

size of the original painting is 13in x 8in (roughly 33cm x 21cm). The portrait is

painted with red chalk on paper (Wiki, Leonardo da Vinci Self-portrait, 2015). It

was painted between 1510 and 1512, when he was living in France. Leonardo

da Vinci made self-portrait when he was aged between fifty and sixty.

It is not commonly viewable by general public because its condition has

become greatly deteriorated with the passage of time (Wiki, Leonardo da Vinci

Self-portrait, 2015). Just like every painting of Leonardo da Vinci, it has been

painted in fine lines, shadowed (use of sfumato technique) and completed with

left hand.

The painting depicts the face of an old man. The face is turned towards viewer

but his eyes do not gaze directly at the viewer. His eyes seemed to be looking

somewhere ahead. The portrait shows eagle like nose of Leonardo da Vinci.

The old man shown in the portrait, has long white hair. The old man also has a

long white beard which is flowing down his chest. This portrait shows Leonardo

da Vinci's wisdom and prudence. In his time long hair and beard were not very

common and were considered as symbols of prudence and intelligence.

Interesting Facts and Beliefs:-

1. Though many believe it to be a self-portrait, but there are still claims that it

is not a Leonardo himself at all. Researchers like Robert Pain and Martin

Kemp (Wiki, Leonardo da Vinci Self-portrait, 2015) assert that this can’t be

Leonardo since he died at an early age. The man in the portrait appears

very old. Suggestions are that this could be his father Piero or his uncle

Francesco.

2. The portrait was claimed to have “magical powers”. During the time of

World War II it was transferred to Rome and hidden there. This was done in

order to prevent Hitler fro, gaining magical powers through the painting.

Bibliography (2011). Retrieved from http://www.leonardodavinci.net/self-portrait.jsp

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Bryner, J. (2007). 25 Secrets of Mona Lisa Revealed. Retrieved from Live Science:

http://www.livescience.com/4648-25-secrets-mona-lisa-revealed.html

(n.d.). Gospel of John, 13:21. In Gospel of John, 13:21 (p. 13:21).

History, T. (2012). Totally History. Retrieved from Madonna of the Rocks:

http://totallyhistory.com/madonna-of-the-rocks/

Leonardo/Supper. (n.d.). Retrieved from www.lairweb.org.nz:

http://www.lairweb.org.nz/leonardo/supper.html

McAloon, J. (2015). The Missing Mona Lisa. Retrieved from http://www.apollo-magazine.com/the-

missing-mona-lisa/

Puchko, K. (2015). 15 Things You Should Know About 'The Last Supper'. Retrieved from Mental Floss:

http://mentalfloss.com/article/64372/15-things-you-should-know-about-last-supper

Shea, L. (2015). www.lisashea.com. Retrieved from Minerva Webworks LLC:

http://www.lisashea.com/hobbies/art/missing.html

Suttle, T. (2015). 10 Stunning Facts About Davinci’s Last Supper. Retrieved from Patheos Labs

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Wiki. (2015). Leonardo da Vinci. Retrieved from wikipedia.org:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leonardo_da_Vinci

Wiki. (2015). Leonardo da Vinci Self-portrait. Retrieved from Wikipedia:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Portrait_of_a_Man_in_Red_Chalk

Wiki. (2015). The Last Supper. Retrieved from Wikipedia:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Last_Supper_(Leonardo_da_Vinci)