Aesthetics Presentation #3

The Art of Leonardo da Vinci

• Many consider Leonardo to be the greatest genius who ever lived.

• Much of his advice to painters is still practiced today.

• Yet he had difficulty completing specific projects, many are unfinished.

Self-Portrait by Leonardo da Vinci 1512 chalk on paper

Leonardo da Vinci

The question of the superiority of painting or sculpture

• Fiercely debated during the Renaissance in Italy as to which created the best & most complete illusion of the natural world

• Michelangelo argued for sculpture

• Leonardo insisted on painting being superior

Leonardo da Vinci – Madonna and St. Anne

Even so, he considered the sculptural volume created through chiaroscuro to be more important than color

• Vitruvius was a 1st c. BC architect & engineer who

• Vitruvius suggested the image of placing a compass at the navel of a man,

• The extension of the fingers & toes would reach the circumference of the circle

Leonardo, Vitruvian Man, c 1487-90, ink, approx 14” x 10”

• Leonardo illustrated Vitruvius’ ideal proportions for the human body by inscribing it within the square and the circle

• More interested in mathematics, engineering, & the natural world than classical literature or archaeology (like his humanist contemporaries)

• His volumes of writings include drawings & notes on anatomy, botany, geology, meteorology, architectural design & mechanics

Study of Human Proportions According to Vitruvius by Leonardo de Vinci 1485-90 pen and ink

Leonardo da Vinci - Drawing of horse

Leonardo da Vinci - Drawing of fetus in womb

Leonardo da Vinci - Drawing of helicopter

High Renaissance

• One of the most well known paintings of all times

• “Mysterious” smile• Elusiveness part of her appeal• Achieved in part by the use of

Sfumato – (smoke) technique for painting with thin glazes of color for a hazy, atmospheric quality, & sense of 3-D form

• He considered dusk to be the finest time of day, as twilight produces a similar natural sfumato effect

Mona Lisa by Leonardo da Vinci 1503-06 oil on panel

Leonardo da Vinci –

Virgin of the Rocks, Louvre, Paris

Leonardo was fascinated by the atmosphere and by its effects on the colors and distinctness of distant objects. Though other artists had already begun to create some of these effects in their work, Leonardo was the first to make careful measurements and suggest rules for applying them realistically in painting. He called the subject aerial perspective.

Virgin on the Rocks

Leonardo da Vinci –

Virgin of the Rocks, Louvre, Paris

In morning light Leonardo observed that distant objects such as mountains look bluer and less distinct than nearby mountains. He also noted that the more distant the mountain, the more its color approached that of the surrounding atmosphere.His experiments suggested artists should do as follows: Paint the nearest one its true color. Paint the one behind proportionately bluer, and the one behind that bluer still.

Virgin on the Rocks

One Point Perspective is

used to create an illusion of depth that extends the

dining hall

The Last Supper by Leonardo da Vinci

1495-97 fresco

The Last Supper by Leonardo da Vinci 1495-97 fresco

•The vanishing point of the Linear Perspective is located behind the head of Jesus

•The coffered ceiling & architectural structure serves to unify composition

Illusion of Depth

The Last Supper by Leonardo da Vinci 1495-97 fresco

Without the elements in Linear Perspective at the top, the drama taking place is too chaotic

The Last Supper by Leonardo da Vinci 1495-97 fresco

Stability is also provided by Jesus’ calm demeanor, in the pyramid formed by his out stretched arms and the grouping of the apostles into threes.

Leonardo created Mathematical order out of dramatic confusion

The Last Supper – detail of Christ

The Last Supper – detail of Judas

The Last Supper - detail

The Last Supper by Leonardo da Vinci 1495-97 fresco

Leonardo’s skill at vividly expressing human emotions can still be seen

The psychological effect of the ruined masterpiece can still bring the observer to silence

• Leonardo broke two long standing traditions in the representation of the Last Supper – The position of Judas

– The halo

Leonardo, The Last Supper, wall painting, refectory of the Monastery of Santa Maria delle Grazie, Milan, Italy, 1495-98, tempera and oil on plaster, 13’ 2” x 29’ 10”

Andrea del Castagno - Last Supper, fresco, 1447

• Dramatic and mystical treatment

• Supernatural event in ordinary setting

• Servants oblivious to spiritual dramaThe Last Supper by Tintoretto, 1592-94 oil on canvas

• Two light sources—one “real”-- one supernatural • Deep colors & chiaroscuro, intense highlights, elongated

figures create a mood of intense spirituality

Tintoretto, The Last Supper, 1592-94, oil on canvas, 12’ x 18’ 8”, Church of San Giorgio Maggiore, Venice