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Leonardo da Vinci A peasant girl named Caterina gave birth to Leonardo da Vinci, an illegitimate child, on April 15, 1452. Leonardo’s father, Ser Piero took him in shortly after his birth while his mother moved away to another town. At the age of 15 Leonardo’s artistic talents were already being recognized. He moved to Florence and worked as apprentice for Andrea del Verrocchio. While an apprentice for Verrocchio, Leonardo helped paint The Baptism of Christ. Some say that Verrocchio quit painting in response to Leonardo’s painting skill surpassing his. Leonardo later left Verrochio’s studio and began working independently. Leonardo da Vinci incorporated many Renaissance painting techniques into his artwork, including linear perspective, aerial perspective, chiaroscuro, and sfumato. Leonardo started painting many pieces during his lifetime, but only finished a relatively small number of them. Of the paintings he did finish, the Annunciation, The Last Supper, and the Mona Lisa really stand out to me. Leonardo da Vinci started painting Annunciation in 1472 and finished it in 1475. Annunciation shows Leonardo’s interpretation of the moment that an angel tells Mary she will conceive a child who will be the Son of God. In the painting an angel, with bird-like wings, kneels in front of Mary. I notice a lack of emotion on the faces of the angel and Mary. No real connection between the two is present in the painting. The colors present in the painting reflect the serious nature of the painting. The background consists of dark tress and mountains off in the distance. Due to the lack of distinct emotions in the painting, Annunciation this artwork does not leave me 1472-75 feeling any emotions. However, I am drawn to this painting because of Leonardo’s attention to detail. From the folds and wrinkles ddddddd in the clothing to the decoration of the marble table, I find myself intrigued by all the fine details present in the painting. The Annunciation reflects Leonardo’s early work and almost seems amateurish due to the many errors present in painting. For example, in the painting Mary places her hand on a table which appears closer to the viewer than she does. Leonardo da Vinci started painting The Last Supper in 1495 and finished it in 1498. The Last Supper shows Leonardo’s interpretation of the last supper. The painting specifically portrays the moment when Jesus tells his twelve disciples that one of them will betray him. The painting shows the disciples reacting in groups of threes. When looking at the painting, my attention goes straight to Jesus in the center. The lighting in the paintings illuminates the area in which Jesus sits. Also, Leonardo uses linear perspective to create the illusion of depth and all lines in the painting converge at the vanishing point located behind Jesus’ head. The colors of the walls in the painting appear very dull, unlike the colors of the people’s The Last Supper 1498 clothing. The contrast in color draws my attention to the Jesus and his disciples. The colors in the ddddddd painting do not make me feel any specific emotions. However, when looking at the painting as a whole, I tend to wonder what exactly each of the disciples is thinking at that moment. Leonardo also incorporated the Renaissance painting techniques of aerial perspective and chiaroscuro into the painting. The blue horizon in the background shows the technique of aerial perspective. Leonardo’s use of light and dark shadows to create a three dimensional effect reflects the Renaissance technique known as chiaroscuro. Leonardo da Vinci began painting the Mona Lisa in 1503. The Mona Lisa portrays an emotionless woman sitting before a vast, mountainous landscape. The woman’s mysterious smile leaves the viewer wondering what exactly the painting means. The sky appears overcast with dark gray clouds and the woman’s clothing appears very dark in color. The painting lacks any bright, happy colors, so when viewing it I tend to feel somewhat depressed. Experts who analyzed the painting report the original colors in the painting were much brighter than they appear today. Over time, the colors were darkened due to layers of varnish applied to conserve the painting. Therefore, if I viewed the painting in its original state I probably would perceive it much differently. When painting the Mona Lisa, Leonardo applied the Renaissance painting techniques of aerial Mona Lisa c. 1503-5 perspective, chiaroscuro, sfumato. The gray tones he used to create the horizon reflect the painting technique of aerial perspective. Leonardo uses chiaroscuro because he uses light and dark shadows to create three ddddddd dimensional affect. The outlines of objects being blended, creating a smoky affect, reflects the Renaissance technique of sfumato. The Mona Lisa sparks a lot of controversy and many people have different theories about who posed for the painting. I am drawn to Leonardo da Vinci’s artwork not because it makes me feel emotional, but because I enjoy how realistic it appears and the fine details in the artwork. I can see a progression in Leonardo’s paintings over time. His earlier paintings were good, but not nearly as great as his later ones. An untrained eye can even spot mistakes in his earlier paintings. His later paintings, however, appear to be perfect. The progression in his paintings makes me think about how I approach my own life. No matter how good I am at something, there will always be room for improvement and I should never settle for less than greatness. Work Cited "The Last Supper." Souls of Distortion. 2006. 19 Jul 2009 <http://www.soulsofdistortion.nl/images/last_supper.jpg>. "Leonardo da Vinci." Web Gallery of Art. 1997. 19 Jul 2009 <http://www.wga.hu/framese.html?/html/l/leonardo/index.html>. "The Last Supper (Leonardo)." Wikipedia. 13 July 2009. 19 Jul 2009 <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Last_Supper_(Leonardo)>. "Annunciation (Leonardo)." Wikipedia. 18 June 2009. 19 Jul 2009 <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Annunciation_(Leonardo)>. "Mona Lisa." Wikipedia. 16 July 2009. 19 Jul 2009 <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mona_Lisa>. "Renaissance Man." Museum of Science. 1996. 19 Jul 2009 <http://www.mos.org/leonardo/bio.html>.