Leonardo da Vinci
The most fascinating man of all time
Jacob Wasserman Global 10R
September 22nd, 2014 Mrs. Mahler
Leonardo da Vinci is the most fascinating multi-talented man of all time. Leonardo is mostly known as a painter, however he delved into many other subjects. He is often referred to as the ideal Renaissance man. "Few men have better earned the title of universal genius than Da Vinci"(Nature 42). Among other things, Leonardo was a painter, engineer, anatomist, and botanist who influenced the Renaissance period and our Western heritage.
Leonardo was born in 1452 in the town of Anchiano, Italy. He was born into a wealthy family but out of wedlock. He had informal teachings of standard subjects until the age of fourteen. After that, he was apprenticed into the workshop of Verrocchio, one of the great artists of the time. From there, he learned many of his skills and had an opportunity to learn more and utilize his great brain.
Leonardo da Vinci was a renowned painter who created many famous works and developed new methods to be used in the following centuries of painting. Leonardo painted many works, however, only approximately fifteen survived due to his sometimes disastrous experimentation with new techniques and methods. He painted the Mona Lisa, which is considered the most famous painting in the world. "The Mona Lisa exemplifies Leonardo's contribution to the art of oil painting, namely his mastery of sfumato"(Visual Arts). It is believed to be of Lisa del Giocondo, a woman of a royal family in Tuscany. However, some think it is a sort of self-portrait, which is supported by modern face recognition technology. "The slightly protective position of her arms, as well as the armrest, creates a sense of distance between sitter and spectator"(Visual Arts). It now hangs in The...