The personality of this genius excites the minds of mankind for more than one century. And today, people continue to wonder who Leonardo da Vinci was. Known for his paintings and the latest developments in engineering, he was ahead of the time in which he lived. More than 500 years have passed since the death of the great creator, but his name always causes a keen interest in our days. Scientists studying the biography and activities of the inventor, claim that it is impossible to capture the scale of the Renaissance titanium. Having become a legend in life, da Vinci remains an unattainable ideal in our world.
Genius biography
First, get acquainted with the ingenious master, who left behind many puzzles. To understand the nature of the hero of all time, we will get acquainted with the biography of Leonardo da Vinci. It will be briefly described in this article.
This unique person was born in 1452. It is still unknown who his mother was, and the father, who recognized his son, did not take him to his place for four years.
The boy had a good education, although, as Leonardo himself mentioned, unsystematic. From childhood, he surprised everyone with his talent, and the painting of a wooden shield is known on which the teenager portrayed the formidable Medusa Gorgon, which astounded others with its realism. Now a copy of this work, made by Caravaggio, is stored in a museum in France. The father, noting the excellent data of his son, decides that they need to be developed, and gives the child to study in Florence to his friend, the famous artist Verrocchio. From this moment begins a new stage in the life of Leonardo da Vinci, whose work left a noticeable mark in art and science. I must say that the talent of the young man was appreciated, and after the teacher saw the image of an angel made by the student, he no longer picked up the brush.
A new period in life
True, not everyone noticed the skilful creations of the young master, who was very upset because he was not invited to work in the Vatican, like other artists. Thus ends the Florentine period and begins a new one.
The frustrated da Vinci moves to Milan, an industrial city where not creative people lived, but artisans who stood firmly on their feet. The young man finds the manager L. Sforza and asks for his patronage, mentioning first of all his engineering ideas, and not his artistic merits. Lodoviko does not refuse a pleasant young man, whose work at that time proved that he was a brilliant designer.
In the Milan period, projects of aircraft, machine tools, locks, canals, mills, surprising everyone by their novelty, appeared, however, no one took up their implementation. And even enlightened minds, sincerely admiring the painter's undoubted talent, did not understand his inventions, which at that time looked absurd.
The genius who influenced the culture
At the end of the 15th century, the master returned to Florence, where one of the most mysterious works appeared, causing controversy among scientists - “The Mona Lisa”. The main masterpiece, which for several centuries has not left indifferent spectators and art historians, has had a great influence on world art culture. Da Vinci himself did not part with his creation, and the safety of this in eternity we owe to King Francis I, who bought the painting from an aging and losing his health master.
In 1519, the heart of a brilliant Italian, whose inventions overtook his time, stops (this happened in France), and all works and manuscripts go to one of his students.
Man or not?
The legacy of the greatest creator is carefully studied from all sides, and a historically significant figure with a huge scope of activity will for a long time be considered an unattainable ideal.
During the life of a lonely inventor, none of his ideas were realized, but if, as scientists believe, at least one idea of a genius was realized, then scientific and technological progress began much earlier. So who was Leonardo da Vinci? Having a magical gift of foresight, the Renaissance titan was called a sorcerer and was not very fond of its unique versatility. The mysterious master, who spent a lot of time on strange inventions, scared the townsfolk who considered him a sorcerer who made a deal with the devil himself.
He did incredible things, for which he was suspected of serving black magic. It was believed that an ordinary person could not be so gifted, and Leonardo broke all the usual stereotypes and, besides, was incredibly strong physically. Not showing any outward appearance of emotions, he kept a diary where he addressed himself to you, and those who read the notes, it seems that there were two personalities in genius, one of whom led the Italian.
Seer
The secrets of Leonardo da Vinci remained a mystery, because no one knows how a genius could invent a gas mixture with which a person could plunge into depth, because for this he would need knowledge of biochemistry, and such a science in those days did not exist.
Da Vinci foresaw the future and excelled at it. His "Prophecies", made at the end of the 15th century, narrate about the events that occur today. It was he who talked about the fact that air bombs leaving funnels would be dropped on the ground, people would parachute and talk on the phone, and the outline called the End of the World clearly shows the outline of an atomic mushroom.
Supernatural abilities
Followers of the esoteric sciences consider him the messenger of Shambhala, who has developed occult abilities. The Florentine was so careful in controlling his feelings that he always had an even mood. His contemporaries repeatedly wondered who Leonardo da Vinci was, because he did not make the impression of an ordinary person. The lonely genius had no friends and family, and communication with relatives ceased. There is no evidence of love stories that could shed light on the character of the creator. For him, there was no such thing as night, because he slept 15 minutes every four hours, minimizing daily sleep.
Self-portrait riddles
Leonardo da Vinci (the photo of his paintings confirms this) did not leave a signature on his masterpieces, but a barely visible sign - a bird soaring up, symbolizing enlightened humanity. Even the self-portrait of da Vinci causes a lot of controversy. Viewers observe an elderly person whose appearance varies depending on the angle, this can be seen even in photographs taken from different angles, and video in motion. But art critics are convinced that this is a sketch of the head of the apostle from the Last Supper.
Secrets of paintings by Leonardo da Vinci
The master invented a special painting technique, in which the objects depicted do not look clear, but blurry, without visible boundaries. The sphumato principle (dispersion) allows the viewer to arouse imagination and notice how the canvas comes to life. The master himself fumigated his room with smoke and recommended that young talents practice this way of painting.
The famous Mona Lisa, aka Mona Lisa, Leonardo da Vinci is written in such a technique, and the main feature of the picture is the woman’s lively smile, when many people think that the mysterious stranger lifts the corners of her lips, which makes her expression change.
Scientists who are interested in this issue conducted a computer study and found that Mona Lisa's smile expresses happiness, a sense of disgust, fear and anger at the same time. Other researchers are convinced: the absence of eyebrows causes such an effect. There is another version according to which the smile is elusive due to the fact that it is in the low-frequency range of light.
The personality of the depicted lady on the canvas also excites the minds of scientists. Many are not inclined to believe that Francesco Giocondo, the wife of a silk merchant from Florence, posed for the artist. Among the original versions, several stand out: according to one, da Vinci painted himself in women's clothing, the other says that this is a portrait of a student who had been with a master for 26 years.
Encrypted Secret Signs
Leonardo da Vinci’s Last Supper fresco in Milan, even after 500 years, is of great interest to researchers trying to decipher the secret signs of genius. The painting, which stores many messages to posterity, perfectly captures the sign language that is studied by art critics. The image on the wall of the monastery conveys the very moment when Jesus tells us that one of the seated apostles will betray him.
Surprisingly, the same person posed for the image of Christ and Judah, only at different times in his life. The inspired, singing young man in the choir amazed the artist so much that he immediately understood: the embodiment of good was found. A few years later, da Vinci discovered a drunkard in a ditch, from which the image of Judas was written. As it turned out later, it was one and the same person, and this fact proves that good and evil in life always go side by side.
The thumb of Christ's right hand touches the tablecloth, while the others are raised - a gesture of regret and sadness, which other artists began to use in their work. Judas, clutching his purse with his right hand, overturns the salt shaker with his left - a sign of trouble in Christianity. And the uprising Peter is overwhelmed with anger, and it is not for nothing that he squeezes the knife in his hand with which he wants to punish the future traitor.
An interesting hypothesis of researchers arguing on the topic that da Vinci portrayed himself among the apostles: it seems to many that he is Thaddeus, sitting with his back to Christ. Given the atheist views of the artist, this version seems plausible.
It is impossible not to mention that during World War II a shell hit the church building, which destroyed everything except the wall with a fresco.
"Madonna" by Leonardo da Vinci
The most touching work of the Italian reflects the strength of his talent, and the image of a spiritualized woman and a caring mother is one of the master’s favorites. The painting, bearing the full name “Madonna Litta”, is now in the Hermitage, and anyone can enjoy the talent of a brilliant painter.
The main feature of the work, written not by oil but by tempera, is bright saturated colors that evoke bright feelings. A background immersed in darkness is needed so that the face of the Mother of God clearly appears towards the viewer.
Mother, a nursing child, embodies the ideal of female beauty, and the eternal masterpiece has touched us for five centuries, which speaks of the incredible skill of the author.
The closed composition is opened by the gaze of the infant Christ, and this is another encrypted symbolism. God, who looks at people, promises them to always be with them. It is known that the creator often redeemed birds in the market and released them into the sky, therefore it was not by chance that he depicted a child clutching a goldfinch with one hand. The painter confirmed that this is not just getting mother's milk, but spiritual feeding, and the soul of a bird copies the soul of a person.
Drawing - Scientific Work
No less famous is the drawing of the Vitruvian man, in which the master emphasized natural ideality and mathematical proportionality. The work is not just an artistic creation, but also a whole scientific work.
Coming from other worlds?
The personality of an extraordinary seer who is ahead of time is as mystically attractive today as it was several centuries ago. However, we still cannot say who Leonardo da Vinci really was. Amazing by the versatility of his talent, this Italian had a huge impact on the development of our civilization, so the eternal debate about whether he is a person or a time traveler, who has arrived from the future and shared important secrets with us, will continue for more than a century.