Leonardo da Vinci

1452 in Vinci

He was the illegitimate son of a notary; his name means "Leonardo from Vinci".

💡 Did you know? Leonardo was the illegitimate son of a notary: barred from a university career, which made him a self-taught man.

Renaissance

He is considered one of the greatest universal geniuses of the era.

💡 Did you know? As the epitome of the „Renaissance man,“ Leonardo united art and science like almost no other.

a versatile universal genius

Leonardo was painter, sculptor, anatomist, engineer and inventor at once: he designed flying machines and tanks centuries ahead of their time.

💡 Did you know? He designed flying machines and war engines long before such things could be built.

sfumato

This technique gives his figures their mysterious expression.

💡 Did you know? In sfumato, Leonardo lets outlines blur softly like smoke: hence the enigmatic smile of the Mona Lisa.

mirror writing

Leonardo filled over 7,000 pages of notebooks: written from right to left in mirror writing.

💡 Did you know? His notes can only be read comfortably in a mirror.

in France (at the royal court)

King Francis I had invited him to his court.

💡 Did you know? Leonardo died in France in 1519: by legend, in the arms of King Francis I.

Mona Lisa

Painted around 1503: the most famous painting in the world, known for her enigmatic smile.

💡 Did you know? The 1911 theft from the Louvre first made the Mona Lisa world-famous; it was missing for two years.

The Last Supper

A mural of around 1495 to 1498; regarded as a peak of Renaissance painting.

💡 Did you know? Leonardo experimented with a new technique that began flaking in his own lifetime; the mural is fragile to this day.

Vitruvian Man

A famous study of the proportions of the human body, around 1490.

💡 Did you know? The man in a circle and square became a symbol of the harmony of humankind, art and mathematics.

Lady with an Ermine

A portrait of Cecilia Gallerani, around 1490.

💡 Did you know? The ermine is a hidden pun and symbol: the sitter was the mistress of the Duke of Milan.

Salvator Mundi

Painted around 1500.

💡 Did you know? Auctioned in 2017 for 450 million dollars: the most expensive painting ever sold; the attribution to Leonardo remains disputed.

Virgin of the Rocks

Leonardo painted two nearly identical versions of this picture: one hangs in the Louvre, one in London.

💡 Did you know? A years-long legal dispute with the patrons is said to be the reason for the second version.

Ginevra de' Benci

Painted around 1476.

💡 Did you know? Leonardo's only painting in America: on the back twine botanical symbols.

The Virgin and Child with Saint Anne

Painted around 1511.

💡 Did you know? Mary, her mother Anne and the Christ child merge into a flowing pyramidal composition.

Benois Madonna

Painted around 1480.

💡 Did you know? A tender early work in which Mary seems almost like a young girl at play.

La Belle Ferronnière

Painted around 1495.

💡 Did you know? The portrait of a Milanese court lady gazes mysteriously out of the picture.

Saint John the Baptist

Painted around 1514.

💡 Did you know? Leonardo's last painting: the Baptist emerges from deep darkness, smiling and pointing to heaven.

Adoration of the Magi

Painted around 1482.

💡 Did you know? The great work was left unfinished when Leonardo set off for Milan; his idea is visible like a workshop secret.

Leonardo da Vinci

Leonardo da Vinci (1452 to 1519) was an Italian painter, inventor and polymath of the High Renaissance who created in the „Mona Lisa“ the most famous picture in the world.

💡 Did you know? Leonardo left only about 15 secure paintings: many unfinished, because new ideas kept pulling him away.