On April 15 in 1452 Leonardo Da Vinci was born and little did his family know of the great artist that he was about to become. His passion from arts started at an early age and by the time he was 20, he had become a master artist in the Guild of Saint Luke. He was a leading figure of the Italian Renaissance and one of the most valuable artist of all times. His most representative works, “Mona Lisa” and “The last supper” are considered one of the most precious works of art in the world.
From 1482 to 1499 Leonardo worked in the court of Ludovico il Moro, the Duke of Milan. During this time he created the famous painting “The last supper”, which would become one of his most representative paintings. Although religious motives are present in many of his works of art, this particular one is by far the most debated one as numerous theories have been discussed regarding the secret messages that Leonardo wished to transmit through his work. A few years after he seized working for the Duke of Milan, he started working on the “Mona Lisa”. Although it was created between the years of 1505 and 1507 the work of art was never really completed. Furthermore it was not delivered to its commissioner and Leonardo kept it with him for the rest of his life. He used to say that art is never really finished, it is just abandoned for a while only to engage in it again. This idea is most reflected by the “Mona Lisa” which was Leonardo’s constant turmoil in search for perfection.
As a representative member of the Renascence period, Leonardo Da Vinci wan interested in both art and science, considering that they are part of the same domain. Over 13 000 pages of drawings and sketches record his theories and discoveries. Although he was interested in various domains such as biology, anatomy, astronomy and architecture the thing that posed most fascination to him was the science of mechanics. His drawings of flying machines were way ahead of his time and while real experiments are not documented most oh his theories and assumptions were accurate.
Eventually, Leonardo’s fame got him the attention of king Francisc I, that invited him to spend some time in France. In the company of his close friend Francesco Melzi, Leonardo da Vinci arrived to France in 1516 and it would be here where he would spend the rest of his life. His presence in France greatly influenced the local artistic movements . However he had little time to rejoice in his new found fame as a vascular cerebral attack put an end to his life in 1519.
