Leonardo da Vinci is an Italian scientist, inventor, artist and writer. One of the brightest representatives of the Renaissance. Many researchers consider him the most brilliant person of all times and peoples.
Biography
Leonardo da Vinci was born on April 15, 1452 in the small village of Anchiano, not far from Florence. His father Piero was a notary, his mother Katerina was a simple peasant woman. Shortly after Leonardo's birth, his father left the family, marrying a wealthy woman. Leonardo spent his first years with his mother. Then the father, who could not have children with his new wife, took the boy to be brought up with him. When he was 13 years old, his stepmother died. The father remarried and became a widower again. His attempts to interest his son in the notarial business were unsuccessful.
At a young age, Leonardo began to demonstrate the extraordinary talent of the artist. His father sends him to Florence, to the workshop of Andrea Verrocchio. Here he mastered the humanities, chemistry, drawing, metallurgy. The apprentice was actively engaged in sculpture, drawing, modeling.
When Leonardo was 20 years old (in 1473), the Guild of St. Luke awarded Leonardo da Vinci the qualification of a master. Then Leonardo had a hand in creating the painting "The Baptism of Christ", which was painted by his teacher Andrea del Verrocchio. Da Vinci's brushes belong to part of the landscape and an angel. Already here the nature of Leonardo as an innovator is manifested - he uses oil paints, which were a novelty in Italy at that time. Verrocchio instructs a talented student to deal with orders for paintings, while he focuses on sculpture. Leonardo's first self-painted painting was Enlightenment.
After this, a period of life begins, which is characterized by the artist's passion for the image of the Madonna. He creates paintings "Madonna Benois", "Madonna with a Carnation", "Madonna Litta". A number of unfinished sketches on the same subject have been preserved.
In 1481, the monastery of San Donato a Scopeto commissioned Leonardo to paint The Adoration of the Magi. Work on it was interrupted and abandoned. Already at that time, da Vinci was "famous" for his tendency to suddenly leave work unfinished. The Medici family, ruling in Florence, did not favor the artist, so he decided to leave the city.
In 1482, Leonardo went to Milan to the court of Lodovico Sforza, where he played the lute. The artist hoped to get a reliable patron in the person of Sforza, offering his services as an inventor of weapons for this. However, Sforza was not a fan of open conflicts, but of intrigue and poisoning.
In 1483, da Vinci received his first order in Milan - for the painting of the altar from the Franciscan brotherhood of the Immaculate Conception. Three years later, the work was completed, and then another 25 years of litigation lasted over payment for the work.
Soon orders begin to arrive from Sforza. Leonardo becomes a court painter, paints portraits and works on a statue of Francesco Sforza. The statue itself was never completed - the ruler decided to use bronze for the manufacture of cannons.
In Milan, Leonardo begins to create a "Treatise on Painting". This work lasted until the death of a genius. Da Vinci invents a rolling mill, a machine for the production of files, a loom for making cloth. All these valuable inventions did not interest Sforza. Also during this period, Leonardo creates sketches of temples, takes part in the construction of the Milan Cathedral. He developed the city sewer system, carried out land reclamation work.
In 1495, work begins on The Last Supper, which ends after 3 years. In 1498, the painting of the Sala delle Asse in Castello Sforzesco ends.
In 1499, Sforza loses power, Milan is captured by French troops. Leonardo had to leave the city, and the next year he returned to Florence. Here he paints the paintings "Madonna with a spindle" and "St. Anna with Mary and the baby."
In 1502, Leonardo became an architect and chief engineer in the service of Cesare Borgia. During this period, da Vinci designs canals to drain swamps, creates military maps.
In 1503, work began on the portrait of Mona Lisa. For the next decade, Leonardo wrote little, trying to devote more time to anatomy, mathematics and mechanics.
In 1513, Leonardo comes under the patronage of Giuliano Medici and comes with him to Rome. Here, for three years, he studied the manufacture of mirrors, mathematics, explores the human voice and creates new paint formulations. In 1517, after the death of the Medici, Leonardo became a court painter in Paris. Here he works on land reclamation, hydrography and very often communicates with King Francis I.
On May 2, 1519, at the age of 67, Leonardo da Vinci died. His body was buried in the church of Saint Florentin, but the grave was lost during many years of wars.
Main achievements of da Vinci
- Leonardo's contribution to the development of world artistic culture is extremely important. He became the founder of a new painting technique.
- Ring pistol lock.
- Tank.
- Parachute.
- Bike.
- Portable military bridges.
- Catapult.
- Spotlight.
- Telescope.
- Robot.
- Leonardo left a huge legacy in literature as well. Most of his works have survived to this day poorly ordered, and often written in cryptography.
Important dates in da Vinci's biography
- April 15, 1452 - birth in Anchiano.
- 1466 - the beginning of work in the workshop of Verrocchio.
- 1472 - becomes a member of the Florentine Guild of Artists. Starts work on the paintings "The Annunciation", "The Baptism of Christ", "Madonna with a Vase".
- 1478 - opening of his own workshop.
- 1482 - moving to Milan to the court of Lodovico Sforza.
- 1487 - work on a winged machine - an ornithopter.
- 1490 - the creation of the famous drawing "Vitruvian Man".
- 1495-1498 - the creation of the fresco "The Last Supper".
- 1499 - departure from Milan.
- 1502 - service with Cesare Borgia.
- 1503 - arrival in Florence. The beginning of work on the painting "Mona Lisa". Finished in 1506.
- 1506 - service with the French king Louis XII.
- 1512 - "Self-portrait".
- 1516 - moving to Paris.
- May 2, 1519 - died in the castle of Clos Luce in France.
- He masterfully played the lyre.
- He was the first to scientifically explain the blue of the sky.
- Worked equally well with both hands.
- Most researchers tend to believe that da Vinci was a vegetarian.
- Leonardo's diaries are written in mirror image.
- Was fond of cooking. He created his signature dish "From Leonardo", which was highly appreciated at the court worlds.
- In the computer game Assassin\'s Creed 2, da Vinci is presented as a minor character who helps the main character with his inventions.
- Despite a good home education, Leonardo felt a lack of knowledge of Latin and Greek.
- According to some suggestions, Leonardo loves carnal pleasures with men. Once he was sued for harassing a posing boy. However, da Vinci was acquitted.
- Leonardo was the first to establish that the light of the moon is the light of the sun reflected from the earth.
- Compiled a list of synonyms for the word "penis". And a very long list.
Da Vinci personality- the most mysterious, brilliant and little studied in history.
The biography of the Italian is very scarce, and he kept his personal life under a heavy lock - there are legends about it, but there are no reliable sources.
But the paintings, inventions, theories, diaries of the master are subject to fame and can shed light on some details of his life.
The great scientist and artist has always stood out from the background of others. Even as a child, he was incredibly curious, asking about everything he saw and heard.
It was hard to survive the separation from his mother, while still a child, he withdrew into himself, and, having matured, began to live in the world of creativity, devoted himself entirely to finding answers to exciting questions.
Birth and childhood
Da Vinci was born on April 15, 1451 in the village of Anchiano, which was located near the village of Vinci, Florence. Parents were not married - this influenced the inner world of the boy and his relationship with his dad. Leonardo's mother was a peasant woman, Katerina, and his father, a young notary, Piero.
Initially, the son lived with Katerina, then dad took him to him. At that time, Piero was married for the first time, but the couple had no children. Ten years later, da Vinci's stepmother died, and his father remarried and was re-widowed. In general, the boy had 4 stepmothers, 12 brothers and sisters.
At the age of 14, he entered the studio of the painter Andrea Verrocchio as an apprentice. The institution is conveniently located in the heart of intellectual Italy. This work determined the further fate of a unique person.
Youth
In parallel with work, the young da Vinci studied the humanities and technical sciences.
Over the years, he has learned:
- metallurgy;
- chemistry;
- drawing;
- sculpture;
- drawing;
- modeling.
Together with the talent, the famous masters Agnolo di Polo, Lorenzo di Credi, Perugino studied in the workshop of Verrocchio. At the age of 20, Leonardo received the qualification of a master in the Guild of St. Luke. After 4 years, he was accused of sodomy, but was acquitted at the trial.
The first artistic masterpieces
The first masterpiece of Leonardo was the painting "The Baptism of Christ", which was ordered by Verrocchio.
The master asked the student to draw one of the two angels and a landscape. Andrea himself painted the rest of the canvas, including the second angel. The difference between them turned out to be colossal - da Vinci's angel turned out better. Verrocchio was so amazed that he abandoned his brush.
The next works of the genius were "The Annunciation", "Madonna with a Vase", "Madonna Benois".
It is hard to imagine that these masterpieces appeared from under the brush of a 20-year-old guy.
Leonardo received his first big order at the age of 30. The monastery of San Donato a Sisto asked to paint the canvas "Adoration of the Magi", which da Vinci never finished.
At the same age, the artist was engaged in another major work - the painting "Saint Jerome".
Personal life
Da Vinci was known as a famous person even during his lifetime - he was always surrounded by friends and students. But the master did not want to disclose intimate relationships.
For 67 years, he never married. Some historians believe that there was a love affair between the genius and Cecilia Gallerani, from whom the portrait of the “Lady with an Ermine” was written off.
Other historians claim that the Italian preferred men. One of the students named Salai, who served as the master's sitter for the paintings "John the Baptist" and "Bacchus", was allegedly the teacher's lover. There is also a theory that Leonardo was a virgin and did not love anyone, devoting himself to the study of the unknown.
last years of life
In the last years of his life, the Italian lived in the Clos Luce castle, accepting the invitation of the French King Francis I.
He almost did not draw, but he successfully organized holidays at court, and also planned a new palace in Romorantan, a spiral staircase in the castle of Chambord, a canal between Saone and Loire.
At the age of 65, Leonardo became difficult to move around, his right hand became numb. Before his death, he was constantly in bed, walking only with the help of loved ones.
The genius of all times died on May 2, 1519, in the castle of Clos Luce, among his students and masterpieces.
They buried the brilliant artist in the castle of Amboise and in his honor an inscription was knocked out on the tombstone, which says that the ashes of the greatest person who visited the French kingdom rest in the walls of the monastery.
The work of Leonardo da Vinci
He left behind many discoveries, works of art, records that provide detailed encyclopedic information on various sciences.
Art
Contemporaries know da Vinci as an artist, although the master himself considered painting only a hobby, and with age he devoted less and less time to it. But even in it, the genius succeeded - he created his own technique, put Renaissance painting on a new, higher level.
He painted not only in tempera, which was used by most artists of the era, but also in oil, which gave the figures figurativeness.
Da Vinci masterfully played the lyre. When he was tried, the case was about a musician, not an artist or an inventor. It is believed that he was engaged in sculpture. But only the terracotta head has survived to this day.
Scientific inventions of the "Magician from Science"
Leonardo was deeply engaged in science, he created many things that made life easier for mankind. Although half of them are called attributed to the author, it is still deserved.
The list is impressive:
- Submarine;
- diving suit;
- parachute
- armored tank;
- two-lens telescope;
- portable bridge;
- spotlight;
- self-propelled cart (car prototype);
- bearing;
- robot;
- wheel lock, which became popular during the life of the creator.
Da Vinci was obsessed with the idea of flight and dreamed of designing an airplane. Among his drawings, they found a diagram of an ornithopter aircraft, which the inventor did not have time to try.
Anatomy and medicine
Leonardo made thousands of medical notes and anatomical sketches. He sought to study the human body in detail. For this, the scientist even performed autopsies of corpses himself. He managed to almost exactly reproduce a person from the inside, only the female reproductive system turned out to be inaccurate.
The genius founded dynamic anatomy, invented a glass model for studying heart valves, was the first to determine the proportions of the skeleton and disproved many theories about medicine of that time. He was ahead of anatomical practice by 300 years.
Literature of the great thinker
The literary heritage of the Italian has come down to posterity in a chaotic form. After the death of the genius, his student and friend Francesco Melzi compiled a Treatise on Painting from passages on art, which was published in 1651.
In addition to these passages, many prose works can be found in Leonardo's notes:
- fables,
- facies (joking stories);
- aphorisms;
- allegories;
- prophecies.
Among the latter, half have already come true. So, the genius predicted the appearance of telephone communication, a two-handed saw, agricultural machines. Other prophecies that have not yet come true are more like biblical ones - they talk about demons and cataclysms.
Diaries of Leonardo
The great Leonardo kept 120 diaries, of which approximately 7,000 pages have survived to date. On them you can find drawings of various inventions, sketches of human anatomy, notes for young artists, architects, musicians, philosophical sayings, comic works, fables and prophecies.
Everything is written with the left hand and in mirror image - from left to right. Da Vinci's mirror code was solved only at the turn of the 20th and 21st centuries.
Priceless diaries after the death of the author were kept by Francesco Melzi, and then the manuscripts inexplicably disappeared. Only a few fragments were found with friends and relatives of Leonardo. For the first time, part of the diaries was published by Carlo Amoretti, the curator of the Ambrosian Library.
Students - young painters da Vinci
Having become a master, Leonardo da Vinci founded his own workshop, in which he taught others the art. Among young students, fame gained:
- Bernardino Luini;
- Ambrogio de Predis;
- Francesco Melzi;
- Andrea Solario;
- Giovanni Boltraffio;
- Cesare da Sesto;
- Giampetrino.
The master gave practical recommendations to young painters in his diaries. He advised developing memory and imagination, finding new and surprising things in ordinary forms, paying more attention to nature, studying paintings by famous artists, the history and theory of painting, and starting practice prepared.
Interesting facts, secrets and fictions of the artist
The personality of da Vinci is surrounded by mystery. He was considered a black magician, an alien or a time traveler. Close friends appreciated and loved him, jealously guarding secrets.
Nevertheless, some interesting facts are reliably known to contemporaries:
- The genius was the first to understand. In his diaries, he wrote that the lighted particles of air located between the Earth and space are to blame. It is noteworthy that Leonardo called the cosmos "celestial blackness."
- In his diaries, da Vinci referred to himself as "you", also speaking to potential readers. This indicates an unstable mental state.
- The Italian slept for 15 minutes every four hours. This sleep technique has been used for many centuries. It helps to increase productivity, improve well-being, reduce the time spent on sleep.
Disputes about who Leonardo da Vinci was - a mystical or just a non-standard person are still ongoing. In any case, this was a unique multifaceted person who had the greatest impact on civilization. You can love or hate him, but it is impossible not to admire him.
Leonardo da Vinci is one of the brightest personalities of the Renaissance, whose works, views and creations were so progressive that they became reality only after many years, which provided the creator with the status of a seer.
Leonardo da Vinci found an adaptation to many of his talents, including painting, design, sculpture, architecture, and scientific activity, thanks to which the mentor entered a number of scientists and philosophers as one of the best natural scientists. You can give him laurels and mention many achievements that are not enough even to count, because some of the secrets of his life may not be revealed to us to this day.
At the end of his life, Leonardo da Vinci traveled a lot, and more precisely, he worked in different countries at the invitation of kings and other noble people. Not every creator or artist can boast of imprinting his person into eternal memory in the works of palaces or many churches - a large-scale memory of someone who once lived and worked. Leonardo also gave a thread of the progressiveness of science of that time - his Golden Ratio and a deep study of human anatomy contributed to the advancement of medicine and the study of the human body in detail, which, as you understand, is of value not only for the artistic sphere, as it turned out.
Leonardo da Vinci spent the last years of his life in France. He was invited to live and work in 1516 by the King of France, Francis I, who later became his biggest customer. After the artist lived for two years in France, taught, worked on his new projects, his right hand began to go numb. Having completely lost the opportunity to work with her, the master went to bed and spent the last year of his life almost in it.
On May 2, 1519, Leonardo da Vinci died. In his environment were his creations and those people, students, to whom he was dear and who, no doubt, were dear to him. The painter and philosopher died in the castle of Clos Luce, in which Francis I himself once grew up, where the great Leonardo lived all his last years. Francis, who was a close friend and colleague of Leonardo da Vinci, in whose hands the great inventor died, could not allow his friend to rest far away, so Leonardo da Vinci was buried in the castle of Amboise. To our eyes, the dedicated tombstone in the chapel of the Amboise castle is still available for viewing. Unfortunately, the grave of Leonardo da Vinci itself was lost during the Huguenot wars, but this does not give rise to legends that Leonardo da Vinci's grave was somewhere else - the gravestone completely fills the picture of the burial place of the painter from Milan. In addition, a message is carved on it, which indicates the year of death and the age at which Leonardo died, namely at the age of 67 in 1519, as well as the place where he died - in Cloux, as well as the burial place - in the castle of Amboise. Based on these data, we can clearly understand the location of the grave of the great and talented Leonardo da Vinci, although in fact his grave has long been gone.
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Who lies in Leonardo's grave? April 8th, 2017
Leonardo da Vinci. Self-portrait.
Leonardo da Vinci is considered one of the most prominent representatives of the Renaissance. This "universal man" was far ahead of his time with his brilliant creativity, discoveries, and research. After himself, the master left many unsolved mysteries, among which is the place of his burial. Da Vinci died not at all in Italy, as many believe, but in France. However, many scientists are still arguing whose remains are actually buried under a granite slab with the name of the great master.
How did it happen?
Cloux Castle (Clos-Lucet), place of Leonardo's death.
After the death of Giuliano Medici, Leonardo da Vinci lost his powerful patron. When in 1516 he was invited by the French king Francis I to take the place of the court painter, the aged da Vinci agreed without a drop of doubt. At that time, France was actively joining the Renaissance, so da Vinci expressed universal reverence. However, the artist at that time was already 65 years old. Forces left the master, the right hand went numb. He rarely took paint in his hands. Fate measured him to live in France for only a couple of years.
The reconstructed room of Leonardo da Vinci in the Château de Cloux (Clos-Lusset) in Amboise. France.
According to legend, the French king Francis I was at the deathbed of da Vinci when he departed for another world. In the castle of Cloux (Clos-Luce), where the great master died, the room in which Leonardo da Vinci lived is now open to the public. The interior of the apartments differs from the general style of the castle, as historians have tried to reconstruct the interior in the Renaissance style to the smallest detail.
Church of Saint-Floratin, in the chapel where Leonardo da Vinci was originally buried. |
As a result of the long Huguenot wars that took place in the second half of the 16th century, the church of Saint-Floratin was gradually destroyed. The poor took away the sarcophagi of aristocrats, among whom was the grave of Leonardo da Vinci. Even the lids of the coffins were taken away, dumping the remains of the dead in one heap
Chapel of Saint-Hubert.
In 1863, thanks to the energy of the French critic Arsène Gousset, excavations were carried out on the site of the church. The found remains of the deceased were mixed, and the bones of Leonardo da Vinci were chosen at random. The critic Gusse was guided by the lifetime description of the artist's appearance - large stature, massive skull, high forehead. Next to the "suitable" remains, stones with fairly worn letters INC were found. The explorer then discovered slabs with the inscriptions LEO and DUS. Arsene Husse rejoiced: the fragments formed the name of the great master LEOnarDUS vINCius.
Tombstone of Leonardo da Vinci.
In the Gothic chapel, built into the sheer stone wall of the Amboise castle, whose fortifications dominate the town of the same name, there is a tombstone with the name of Leonardo da Vinci. Therefore, many visitors to the castle of Amboise take this graceful Gothic chapel, as if floating in the air, for the actual burial place of the great artist.
Granite slab and epitaph by Leonardo da Vinci in the Saint-Hubert chapel.
sources
You will find a message about the Italian scientist and artist, inventor and scientist, musician and writer, as well as a representative of the art of the Renaissance, in this article.
Message about Leonardo da Vinci briefly
The great genius was born in the village of Anchiato near the town of Vinci on April 15, 1452. His parents were unmarried, and he spent the first years of his life with his mother. After that, the father, a well-to-do notary, took his son into his family. The young man in 1466 enters the workshop of the Florentine artist Verrocchio as an apprentice. Among his hobbies are drawing, modeling, sculpture, work with leather, metal and plaster. In 1473, in the Guild of St. Luke, he received the qualification of a master.
The beginning of his creative path was marked by the fact that he devoted all his free time only to painting. In the period 1472 - 1477, such famous paintings by Leonardo da Vinci as "The Annunciation", "The Baptism of Christ", "Madonna with a Flower", "Madonna with a Vase" were created. And in 1481 he created the first major work - "Madonna with a Flower".
The further activity of Leonardo da Vinci is connected with Milan, where he moves in 1482. Here he enters the service of Ludovico Sforza, the Duke of Milan. The scientist had his own workshop, where he worked with his students. In addition to creating paintings, he developed a flying machine based on the flight of birds. First, the inventor created the simplest apparatus on the basis of wings, and then he developed an airplane mechanism with the described complete control. But they failed to bring their idea to life. In addition to design, he studied anatomy and architecture, gave the world a new, independent discipline - botany.
At the end of the 15th century, the artist created the painting “Lady with an Ermine”, the drawing “Vitruvian Man” and the world-famous fresco “The Last Supper”.
In April 1500, he returned to Florence, where he entered the service of Cesare Borgia as an engineer and architect. After 6 years, da Vinci is back in Milan. In 1507, the genius met Count Francesco Melzi, who would become his student, heir and life partner.
The next three years (1513 - 1516) Leonardo da Vinci lives in Rome. Here he created the painting "John the Baptist". 2 years before his death, he began to have health problems: his right hand became numb, it was difficult to move independently. And the last years the scientist was forced to spend in bed. The great artist died on May 2, 1519.
- The artist perfectly owned both the left and right hand.
- Leonardo da Vinci was the first to give the correct answer to the question "Why is the sky blue?". He was sure that the sky was blue because there was a layer of illuminated air particles between the planet and the blackness above it. And he was right.
- Since childhood, the inventor suffered from "verbal blindness", that is, a violation of the ability to read. Therefore, he wrote in a mirror way.
- The artist did not sign his paintings. But he left identification marks, which have not yet been studied.
- He was excellent at playing the lyre.
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