Leonardo da Vinci :: essays research papers

Leonardo da Vinci, perhaps the greatest man in history, invented thousands of thingsincluding the helicopter, tank and portable bridge. Leonardo was not nevertheless an inventor,but a sculptor, an artist and an architect. He was born 1452 in the small town of Vinci,in Tuscany. His father was a wealthy notary and his mother a niggard woman. In themid 1460s the family moved to Florence here he was given the best education Florencecould offer. He advanced rapidly socially and intellectually . He was genuinely handsome anda fine musician. About 1482 Leonardo entered the service of the duke of Milan. Due to a recommendationstating that he could build portable bridges and knew techniques in constructing canons,ships and catapults as well as other weapons. He served as principle engineer in thedukes military projects. In 1502 Leonardo entered the service of Cesare Borgia, duke ofRomagna. He served as Cesares chief architect and engineer. Leonardo supervised workon the fortresses of the papal territories in central Italy. In 1506 Leonardo went to Milanagain at the summons of its French governor Charles dAmboise. For the next six yearshe divided his time between Milan and Florence. He still continued his engineeringprojects and worked on a figure for a monument to a commander of the French forces inthe city. Although Leonardo produced a small number of paintings he was an influent artist. TheMona Lisa, his near famous work, is a great example of two techniques sfumato andchiaroscuro of which he was one of the first great masters. Because none of Leonardossculptural projects were brought to completion, his approach to 3 dimensional art canonly be judged by his drawings. As a scientist he towered over his generation.