Leonardo da Vinci, a multifaceted genius of the Italian Renaissance, worked with influential families like the Medici, Borgia, and Sforza. Born in Vinci in 1452, he was an illegitimate child raised by his notary father and peasant mother. Apprenticed to artist Verrocchio at 14, Leonardo excelled in various disciplines, including painting, sculpture, engineering, and anatomy. His notable works include "The Last Supper" and "Mona Lisa." He also designed innovative machines and military weapons. In his later years, he served French King Francis I and died in France in 1519. His extensive contributions to art and science are still celebrated today.
Here are the key facts extracted from the text:
1. Leonardo da Vinci was born in 1452 in Vinci, Italy.
2. His father was a notary of the Florentine Republic.
3. His mother was a peasant, making Leonardo an illegitimate son.
4. Leonardo was introduced to art by his paternal grandmother Lucia.
5. At age 14, he became an apprentice in Verrocchio's workshop.
6. Leonardo learned various skills including chemistry, calculus, and mechanics.
7. He worked with powerful Italian families like the Medici, Borgia, and Sforza.
8. The oldest preserved drawing by Leonardo is the landscape of the Arno valley from 1473.
9. He experimented with the sfumato technique in his painting "Annunciation".
10. In 1476, Leonardo was accused of sodomy but acquitted.
11. He moved to Milan in 1482 to work for Ludovico Sforza.
12. Leonardo created sets for plays and painted works like "The Virgin of the Rocks".
13. He worked as a military engineer designing weapons and defenses.
14. He sketched designs for inventions like a glider and armored combat vehicles.
15. Leonardo planned an equestrian statue for Francesco Sforza which was never completed.
16. In 1499, when the French invaded Milan, the bronze for the statue was used for cannons.
17. Leonardo opened an academy in Milan around 1490.
18. He painted "The Last Supper" for the Dominican convent of Santa Maria delle Grazie.
19. The painting "The Last Supper" began to deteriorate over time due to experimental techniques.
20. The Vitruvian Man drawing represents human proportions within a square and circle.
21. Leonardo wrote diaries and notebooks using mirror writing because he was left-handed.
22. His student Giacomo Caprotti, also known as Salai, may have been more than a friend to him.
23. After the fall of Ludovico Sforza, Leonardo worked for Louis XII of France and Cesare Borgia.
24. He designed a map of Imola using a wheelbarrow with balls to measure distances.
25. In Florence between 1503 and 1506, he painted "Mona Lisa" also known as "La Gioconda".
26. In 1513, he moved to Rome under Pope Leo X's patronage but felt marginalized there.
27. King Francis I of France commissioned him to design a mechanical lion in 1515.
28. Leonardo moved to France in 1516 where he felt highly valued and continued his work until his death in 1519 at age 67.
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