This week's article is about someone who is both a famous artist and
a famous scientist. He was a man who envisioned many things
before his time.
His futuristic ideas included flying machines, parachutes,
submarines, underwater rebreathing devices, self-floatation devices for
rescueing drowning people, swimming fins, pumping mechanisms, dredging systems,
water-well drill, swing bridges, canals, leveling/surveying
instruments, cranes, pulley systems, street-lighting systems,
mechanical saw, compasses,contact lenses, and even several military
weapons.
Leonardo da
Vinci was born on April 15th, 1452 in Vinci, Italy. His parents never
married, at least not to each other. His father was from a well-to-do
family and his mother was a peasant. At the time, it was not considered
appropriate for a man of his upbringing to marry a commoner. Instead,
his father married another woman with a more suitable background
the same year the Leonardo was born. Although he was never
legitimized, his father maintained custody and he grew up with all
the advantages of a wealthy family.
When Leonardo was 14, his father set him up with an apprenticeship
with a famous painter of the time, Andrea del Verrocchio in Florence, Italy.
Verrocchio also taught him to sculpt in wood, stone and clay, as well as how
to cast metal objects in silver and gold. He observed and sketched
everything he came across. Leonardo showed so much talent that he
made his teacher feel inadequate. Even though he had surpassed his
own teacher, Leonardo stayed and used Verrocchio's shop until he got his own gig.
In 1482, he entered the service of the Duke of Milan. Duke
Ludovico Sforza hired Leonardo for his
artistic abilities. However, when Florence went to war
with the neighboring city of Pisa, the Duke put Leonardo's talent to
other uses. It was in Milan that Leonardo reached new levels in
scientific study and in art. He spent a lot of his time
studying nature and geometry. He constructed canals to divert rivers,
designed churches, forts, and weapons, and even tried to build, my personal
favorite... a flying machine.
In his own private studio, fully staffed with apprentices, Leonardo dreamed,
designed, and built. All the while, he kept detailed notes of his
observations and inventions. Some of them were written backwards and in code
to prevent other people from stealing his ideas. (Bill Gates recently plunked down $30
million for one of these notebooks!).
It was during this time that Leonardo produced his famous painting "The Last Supper" .
Unfortunately, in 1499 the French invaded and Ludovico Sforza's
fell from power. Leonardo was left to search for a new employer.
Though his situation was less advantageous at this point, he did manage to
complete his most famous painting, the "Mona Lisa", in 1503.
From 1514 to 1516, Leonardo lived in Rome and worked for Prince Giuliano the
Magnificent, brother of Pope Leo X. Leonardo had wished to keep
studying human anatomy, but the Pope would not allow him to examine
and cut up dead bodies. Though this made it hard for Leonardo to
study anatomy, it didn't stop him. Hhe studied animal parts he got
from the local butcher instead and went on to produce model of how the heart works.
Following the death Giuliano de' Medici in March of 1516, Leonardo was offered
the title of Premier Painter and Engineer and Architect of the King
by Francis I in France. This was a nice job for Leonardo who by
this time was suffering from a paralysis of the right hand. He
continues to draw and teach until he died, at age 67, on May 2, 1519
in Cloux, France.
