Granados 1

Jose Granados

Amelia King

Art 105

December 03, 2013

Leonardo di ser Piero da Vinci

Leonardo da Vinci was born in Vinci, Italy on April 15, 1452 to Ser Piero and Caterina Piero. From a young age, he shows intelligence and curiosity to the world around him (films media 2006). At the age of 14, he is sent to apprentice under Andrea de Verrocchio were his amazing talents blossom. He studies painting, architecture, and everything related to science. His genius lands him his first job; to paint an angel in Verrocchio’s “Baptism of Christ”. This leads to Verrocchio’s acknowledgement that da Vinci is better than him and resolves in his decision never to paint again. By the age of 20, he is considered a master artist and establishes his own work shop. He goes on to paint, sculpt, and draw throughout the Europe. Da Vinci was a complex man who believed that the more knowledge the more praise you would get and the better you could incorporate in your paintings. He had a great understanding of sunlight and anatomy.

In the portrait of Ginevra Benci 1475 a young woman is standing in front of juniper trees and a lake. The sunlight is hitting her from the front and as you look farther behind her it darkens up. The face, shoulders, lake, and between the trees is painted with lighter colors and as you look farther back it creates an appearance that everything is farther and farther behind. He puts a perfect amount of sunlight on her face that makes her look real as if you were looking at her through a window. He believes that because he understands how sunlight appears different depending on what it’s shinning on and what angle it’s coming from, it allows him to create a more realistic look.

In da Vinci’s paintings of woman portraits, he illustrates perfectly shaped heads, detailed facial features, and human posture. He gives credit to his extensive knowledge about anatomy and the human body which he has study and written numerous books on. He understands how the features on a body should look and this allowed him to paint not just a realistic painting but a perfectly proportion painting.

Da Vinci was a complicated man with incredible knowledge which he used to create beautiful, realistic paintings throughout his life. He used this to create beautiful pictures such as The Mona Lisa, The Last Supper, The Battle of Anghiari, and so many more. His creativity and complexity left a mark in the world of art and will always be remember.

Vitruvian Man (1490)Vitrubian Man was created in 1490. It is accompanied by notes from architect Virtruvius; a man who believed that the perfect body should be eight heads high. This image is a combination of art and mathematics. The drawing is based on the ideal of the perfect human proportions. Encyclopedia Britanica Online state, " Leonardo da Vinci believed the workings of the human body be an analogy for the workings of the universe".

The Last Supper (1495–1498)

The Last Supper is the final meal that Jesus shared with the Apostles in Jerusalem before he was crucified. Jesus breaks bread with the Apostles and says, “This is my body which is given to you" there after tells the Apostles, “to love one another as I have loved you" and says his farewell. This mural was painted in the Convent of Santa Maria delle Grazie in Milan, Italy for Ludovico Sforza, Duke of Milan.

The Battle of Anghiari (1505)

This was a bloody battle fought on 29 June 1440 between Milan and the Italian League. They concentrated on Anghiari, Tuscany, a small village to try and eliminate the League. The Milanese confident in their superior manpower attacked the League on the element of surprise. After hours of fighting and loss of numerous lives: the battle ended with a victory for the League Army. The picture allegedly shows from left to right: Francesco Piccinino, Niccolo Piccinino, Ludovico Trecisan and Giovanni Antonio del Vaizo Orsini.

Portrait of a man in red chalk (1512)

This is a self portrait of Leonardo DaVinci at around the age of sixty although not universally accepted; this is believed to be his only authentic self-portrait. There has been criticism of the drawing because it shows a man very old in age and Leonardo only lived to be sixty seven. Several portraits are believed to exist of Leonardo as a young man. They include Verrocchio's statue of David and a self portrait in the Adoration of the Magi.

Mona Lisa (1517)

La Gioconda in Italian was painted between 1503 and 1506, although Leonardo may have continued working on it as late as 1517 and is thought to be a portrait of Lisa Gherardini. It is in oil on white lombardy poplar panel and displayed at The Louvre museum in Paris, France. The subjects expression is described as enigmatic, the monumentality of composition, the subtle modeling of forms and the atmospheric illusionism were novel qualities that have contributed to the continuing fascination and study of the work.

Work Cited

Landrus, Matthew Hayden, and Matthew Hayden Landrus. Leonardo Da Vinci : The Genius, His Work and The Renaissance / Matthew Landrus. n.p.: London, UK : Andre Deutsch, 2009., 2009. Pima College Library Catalog. Web. 3 Dec. 2013.Leonardo Da Vinci [Electronic Resource (Video)] : Mind Of Renaissance / Trans Europe Film. n.p.: New York, N.Y. : Films Media Group, [2006], c2001., 2006. Pima College Library Catalog. Web. 3 Dec. 2013.

"Leonardo Da Vinci (Italian Artist, Engineer, and Scientist)." Encyclopedia Britannica Online. Encyclopedia Britannica, n.d. Web. 01 Dec. 2013.