Renaissance Art
In the time of the Renaissance, people valued art. There were various styles of painting, sketching, and sculpting. Art was used for many things. Some bought paintings for their beauty; others hired artists to decorate their homes. Most of these paintings were of religious figures seeing as they had just come out of the Middle Ages. Even though humanism rose, religion still held a place in people's hearts.
Leonardo da Vinci
Leonardo da Vinci was born on April 15, 1452 in Vinci, Italy to a notary father, Ser Piero da Vinci, and a peasant mother only known as Caterina. He never mentioned anything about his childhood in his notes or even his family. There is, however, and record of Michelangelo's "intense dislike" for Leonardo, but it never stated why. Leonardo always had a knack for the arts. His keen obervation skills and ability to detach himself from the world around him were talents that helped him start his love and carry it all throughout his life. He was apprenticed to Andrea del Verrocchio at age 15 and soon surpassed him. Verrocchio even retired his art when he realized Leonardo, his own student who had only been under him for 4 years, surpassed him already.
His art held religious figures just as his competators' did. Characters such as Jesus Christ, the Holy Cross and the church were seen in nearly all the Renaissance art. Leonardo's paintings, though containing the same characters, held a different vibe to it. Unlike others, Leonardo saw man as a whole in his enviornment rather than sterotypes. A certain style of shading the 3-dimentional subjects gave Leonardo's work the life-like quality that made it exotic. Although not created by him, he was well known for his skill with a technique called "sfumato," literally meaning "gone up in smoke." The painting that is known to exhibit this style the most is the Mona Lisa. Sfumato is a painting technique in which there are no harsh outlines and is painted with full strokes that enhance color and light. Leonardo described sfumato as "without lines" as humans and objects do not have outlines to define them but only colors.
Aside from being one of the most famous artists of all time, he was also an accomplished scientist. His studies in anatomy, zoology, botany, geology, aero-dynamics and hydro-dynamics impacted the scientific world. He even invented some machines in his spare time using his notes on his discoveries. It shouldn't be surprising that he only turned to science to improve his art skills.
His art held religious figures just as his competators' did. Characters such as Jesus Christ, the Holy Cross and the church were seen in nearly all the Renaissance art. Leonardo's paintings, though containing the same characters, held a different vibe to it. Unlike others, Leonardo saw man as a whole in his enviornment rather than sterotypes. A certain style of shading the 3-dimentional subjects gave Leonardo's work the life-like quality that made it exotic. Although not created by him, he was well known for his skill with a technique called "sfumato," literally meaning "gone up in smoke." The painting that is known to exhibit this style the most is the Mona Lisa. Sfumato is a painting technique in which there are no harsh outlines and is painted with full strokes that enhance color and light. Leonardo described sfumato as "without lines" as humans and objects do not have outlines to define them but only colors.
Aside from being one of the most famous artists of all time, he was also an accomplished scientist. His studies in anatomy, zoology, botany, geology, aero-dynamics and hydro-dynamics impacted the scientific world. He even invented some machines in his spare time using his notes on his discoveries. It shouldn't be surprising that he only turned to science to improve his art skills.