Leonardo Da Vinci Biography

Leonardo da Vinci was an Italian polymath, who worked as a painter, draughtsman, engineer, scientist, theorist, sculptor, and architect during the High Renaissance. While he rose to prominence as a painter, he was also recognised for his notebooks, which contained sketches and notes on a wide range of disciplines, including anatomy, astronomy, botany, cartography, painting, and palaeontology. Leonardo's creativity typified the Renaissance humanist ideal, and his aggregate works are second only to Michelangelo's in terms of impact on future generations of painters.

Leonardo da Vinci is regarded as one of the finest painters in history and is often regarded as the originator of the High Renaissance. Despite having many incomplete works and fewer than 25 major works ascribed to him, he created some of the most influential paintings in Western art. His greatest masterpiece, the Mona Lisa, is often regarded as the most renowned painting in the world. The Last Supper is the most widely reproduced religious picture in history, and his Vitruvian Man drawing is a cultural symbol. Salvator Mundi, credited to Leonardo in whole or in part, was sold at auction for US$450.3 million in 2017, setting a new record for the most expensive painting ever sold at auction.

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Leonardo da Vinci Information

When Was Leonardo da Vinci Born?

Leonardo da Vinci date of birth: April 15th 1452

How Old Was Leonardo da Vinci at the Time of His Death?

Leonardo da Vinci age: 67 years old

Who is Leonardo da Vinci Married To?

Da Vinci didn’t marry. His private life was secretive and his sexuality has been the subject of satire, analysis, and speculation.

When Did Leonardo da Vinci Die?

Leonardo da Vinci date of death: May 2nd 1519

How Did Leonardo da Vinci Die?

On May 2, 1519, at the age of 67, Da Vinci died of a possible stroke.

Who is da Vinci’s Heir?

Leonardo da Vinci didn’t marry and never had children, so there are no direct descendants. Melzi, his assistant, was named the primary heir and executor of his inheritance.

About Leonardo da Vinci’s Life 

Giorgio Vasari's Vite de' più eccelenti architettori, pittori e scultori italiani was the first known biography of Leonardo da Vinci, written in 1550. ("The lives of the most excellent Italian architects, painters and sculptors''). Because Vasari was only a youngster when Leonardo died, the majority of the material he gathered came from first-hand stories of Leonardo's contemporaries. This biography is still the best place to start when researching Leonardo's life.

Leonardo da Vinci was born in the village of Anchiano, Tuscany, near Florence, a few miles from the little town of Vinci. Leonardo was thought to be the illegitimate son of Caterina, a local peasant woman. Piero da Vinci, his biological father, appears to have been a Florentine notary or tradesman. Leonardo's mother was married off by his biological father to Antonio di Piero del Vacca, a labourer. The marriage took place just a few months after she gave birth to a boy named Leonardo, according to records newly discovered by the Museo Ideale Leonardo Da Vinci in his hometown of Vinci. He was known as "Leonardo di ser Piero da Vinci," which simply means "Leonardo, son of Piero, from Vinci, Italy," despite the fact that he was born after contemporary naming rules were established. "Leonardo" or "Io, Leonardo" were Leonardo's signatures on his works ("I, Leonardo").

Leonardo grew up in Florence with his father, where he began drawing and painting. When he was five years old, he began attending school. His early sketches were so good that his father showed them to painter/sculptor Andrea del Verrocchio, who hired Leonardo as a Garzone when he was 14 years old (an apprentice). Leonardo was exposed to a variety of tasks in Verrocchio's workshop, ranging from the painting of altarpieces and panel paintings to the creation of enormous sculptural projects in marble and bronze. Lorenzo de Credi and Pietro Perugino were additional collaborators with Leonardo. 

Leonardo was enrolled into the Florence Painters Guild in 1472, and he was still regarded as Verrocchio's assistant four years later. A pen and ink drawing of the Arno Valley is Leonardo's earliest known dated work. It was written on August 5, 1473. This piece was completed before Leonardo, at the age of 26, became an independent master in 1478. His first assignment, to create an altarpiece for the chapel of the Florentine town hall, the Palazzo Vecchio, was never completed. The Adoration of the Magi, which he began in 1481 but never finished, was his first large picture. It was going to be for the San Donato a Scopeto Monastery in Florence.

At the end of April 1500, Leonardo returned to Florence for a brief visit. He joined the service of Cesare Borgia, the son of Pope Alexander VI, at Florence. He was Borgia's military architect and engineer, and he accompanied him all around Italy. After Swiss mercenaries drove out the French, he returned to Milan in 1506 and fell into the clutches of Maximilian Sforza.

Leonardo resided in Rome from 1513 to 1516, at which time painters Raphael and Michelangelo were active, though he had limited contact with them. However, Leonardo was most likely instrumental in Michelangelo's David's relocation to Florence, which was done against Michelangelo's wishes.

Francis I of France retook Milan in 1515. For the peace discussions between the French king and Pope Leo X in Bologna, Leonardo was commissioned to create a centrepiece mechanical lion. This was most likely his first interaction with King Louis XVI of France. In 1516, he joined Francis' service and was assigned to the manor home Clos Lucé (also known as "Cloux"; now a public museum) near to the king's residence at the royal Chateau Amboise.

Da Vinci died on May 2, 1519, after spending the last three years of his life in Clos Lucé, France. 60 beggars followed his casket, as he had requested. In the castle of Amboise, he was buried in the Chapel of Saint-Hubert. Salai was not forgotten, even though Melzi was his primary successor and executor. Half of Leonardo's vines were given to him.

About Leonardo da Vinci’s Art

In many of his works, Leonardo pioneered new painting methods. One of these, the Chiaroscuro colour shading technique, made use of a series of glazes custom-crafted by Leonardo. It is distinguished by delicate colour changes between regions. Chiaroscuro is a technique that uses a strong contrast of light and dark. Leonardo also devised a sfumato effect, which creates an ambient haze or smoky effect.

Early works in Florence (1452–1482)

Leonardo collaborated with Verrocchio to paint The Baptism of Christ for the friars of Vallombrosa while working as an apprentice in 1476. He painted the angel in the foreground and the scenery in the background. There is a clear distinction between the two painters' work. Leonardo's brushwork and blending were finer than Verrochio's. Verrocchio was so taken aback by Leonardo's work that he resolved never to touch a brush again, according to Vasari.

The Madonna and Child, which was finished in 1478, was Leonardo's first solo painting. He also created a picture of a little boy eating gelato about the same time. He painted a little Annunciation painting, which is currently in the Louvre, between 1480 and 1481. He also painted St. Jerome in 1481, but he never finished it. He began painting The Adoration of the Magi between 1481 and 1482. He created elaborate, ambitious designs and numerous drawings for the painting, but it was never completed since the Duke of Milan had accepted Leonardo's services.

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One of his first paintings done in Florence, the Benois Madonna (1478)

Milan (1482–1499)

Leonardo worked with Ludovico Sforza in Milan for 17 years (between 1482 and 1499). During this time, he produced a large number of paintings, sculptures, and drawings. He also created several engineering sketches and arranged court festivities. He was allowed complete freedom to work on any project he wanted, yet he left many incomplete and only completed six works. Virgin of the Rocks was painted in 1494, and The Last Supper (Ultima Cena or Cenacolo, in Milan) was painted in 1498. He painted Madonna and Child with St. Anne in 1499. Between 1490 and 1495, he worked on a number of notebooks, notably the Codex Trivulzianus. 

Leonardo had a propensity of starting large paintings with a lot of drawings and sketches and then abandoning them. One of his undertakings was the creation of designs and models for Gran Cavallo, a seven-meter-high (24-foot) bronze horse statue. The project was never completed due to the war with France. The bronze that was supposed to be used to manufacture the statue was instead utilised to make a cannon. The clay model of the statue was used for target practice by the victorious French forces. A tiny bronze horse, assumed to be from Leonardo's original design and made by an apprentice, is on display at the Hunt Museum in Limerick, Ireland. A pair of full-scale statues based on his designs were cast in 1999. The first was built in Grand Rapids, Michigan, and the second in Milan, Italy.

Ludovico Sforza lost control of Milan when the French arrived in 1499, prompting Leonardo to seek new patrons.

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The Last Supper (1498), painted in Milan

Nomadic Period: Italy and France (1499–1516)

Leonardo had a large number of patrons between 1499 and 1516. Before going to France in 1516, he toured around Italy and completed various commissions. His "Nomadic Period" has been coined to describe this time period.

When he returned to Florence, the Grand Council Chamber in the Palazzo Vecchio, the Florentine Republic's seat of government, commissioned him to paint a massive mural honouring the Battle of Anghiari, a famous military victory in Florence's history. Michelangelo, Leonardo's adversary, drew on the opposite wall. Leonardo departed the city with the mural unfinished after making a magnificent array of studies in preparation for the painting.

According to most evidence, Leonardo began work on the Mona Lisa (also known as La Gioconda, currently at the Louvre in Paris) in 1503 and worked on it until 1506. He continued to work on it on a sporadic basis after that. Lisa de Gherardini del Giocondo, the wife of silk merchant Francesco del Giocondo, is most likely depicted in the artwork. The silk merchant commissioned the artwork to honour the birth of their second son as well as their relocation to a new residence. Leonardo almost certainly carried the picture around with him at all times and did not travel without it.

The Mona Lisa is the world's most renowned painting. It was noteworthy at the time for his use of sfumato (the smokey appearance he achieved), which defied convention, as well as the sitter's perspective, contrapposto, and the bird's-eye view of the background. The picture has attracted a tremendous amount of media attention in recent years. Mona Lisa's enticing and mysterious smile, in addition to Leonardo's cutting-edge skills, is incredibly intriguing.

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Mona Lisa (1503–1507)