Leonardo was most of all an excellent observer. He concerned himself with what the eye could see, rather than with purely abstract concepts (Summers, D. 2013). “Leonardo da Vinci was born on April 15, 1452, in Vinci, Italy. Da Vinci was born out of wedlock.
Da Vinci was raised by his father, Ser Piero, and his stepmother. At the age of 14, Da Vinci began apprenticing with the artist Verrocchio. For six years, he learned a wide breadth of technical skills, including metalworking, leather arts, carpentry, drawing and sculpting. By the age of 20, he had qualified as a master artist in the Guild of Saint Luke and established his own workshop”.
“Leonardo trains in Florence as a painter, almost certainly with Verrocchio, and he becomes a member of the painters’ guild in 1472. But in about 1482 he sends a letter to Ludovico Sforza, the duke of Milan. In it he offers the duke his skills, which he lists under ten headings. The first nine are all to do with war. The 30-year-old genius declares that he can provide the duke with original designs for portable bridges, siege engines, mining and explosive equipment, mortars to spray the enemy with small stones, and even a cannon-proof vehicle to transport troops safely into the midst of the enemy – in other words a tank”( Gascoigne, Bamber.
2001)
Michelangelo was one of the most famous artists in history. He was mostly fascinated in forming large marble statues, but his endless artistic energy also led him to become a great painter and architect as well as a poet. He was also one of the most famous people of his time and a great leader of the Italian Renaissance, a period marked by a rebirth of interest in the art and learning of ancient Greece and Rome. (Summers, D.
2013) Michelangelo is best known for his treatment of the human body in painting and sculpture. His figures express a sense of grandeur and power, and arouse strong emotions in many spectators. In size, strength, and emotional intensity, these figures go beyond real people. Michelangelo’s figures are both animated and restrained, and seem to have great spiritual energy.
His work presses toward the extremes of heroism and tragedy but is never false or artificial. (Summers, D. 2013) Michelangelo was born on March 6, 1475. His full name was Michelangelo Buonarroti. He came from a respectable Florence family and was born in the village of Caprese, where his father was a government agent. Michelangelo had a brief classical education that dealt with the literature, art, and life of ancient Greece and Rome.
When he was 12 years old, Michelangelo became an apprentice to the most popular painter in Florence, Domenico Ghirlandaio. “Before his apprenticeship was completed, Michelangelo stopped painting and began working as a sculptor under the guidance of a pupil of the sculptor Donatello. Michelangelo attracted the support of the ruler of Florence, Lorenzo de’ Medici, who invited the young artist to stay at his palace. Michelangelo’s earliest surviving sculpture is a small unfinished relief of a battle, done when he was about 16. This work shows the obvious influence of ancient Roman marble sculpture belonging to Lorenzo. But the relief also shows the force and movement that became typical of Michelangelo’s style.
During these years, he began the study of anatomy” (Summers, D. 2013). He is one of the greatest artists of all time, a man whose name has become synonymous with the word “masterpiece”: Michelangelo Buonarroti. As an artist he was supreme, the maker of works of sublime beauty that display the full breadth of the human condition.
Yet in a world where art prospered only with patronage, Michelangelo was caught between the conflicting powers and whims of the Medici family in Florence, and the Papacy in Rome. Unlike many artists of his time, his genius was acknowledged (New Renaissance Art 2001) Three of Leonardo da Vinci most famous works are Mona Lisa, Last Supper, and Virgin of the Rock. “Let’s first examine the most recognizable and renowned of Da Vinci’s works, the Mona Lisa. This painting like many of Leonardo’s works took a long time to finish. He was famous for his putting off doing anything but when he did finish it was a masterpiece. It took Da Vinci sixteen years to complete the Mona Lisa quite a chunk of Da Vinci’s 67 years alive.
However, while taking his time with the Mona Lisa Da Vinci continued to create. Some of the main reasons that this painting is so famous are its ambiguity, her smile, and of course its theft. The ambiguity is that there has always been a debate on whether the subject was Lisa Del Giocondo or someone else. Among the thought subjects are Da Vinci’s mother and more shockingly Da Vinci himself. Although the most popular idea once again dominates and the generally accepted subject is Lisa Del Giocondo.
Her smile is another point of interest because many say if you cover one side she appears to be frowning and if you cover the other she appears to be smiling. Whether or not you believe this you do notice that she is not smiling brilliantly nor is she straight-faced she has a faint smile almost a smirk. Da Vinci employed techniques to accent her face and almost make you gaze at it. Da Vinci also pioneered the technique of putting the subject against a landscape background. It was rare to see this normally one would include a curtained window or some similar object in which the subject was actually sitting in front of” (Walker, J.
A 2011). “The Last Supper is remarkable in that the original started to fade and become deteriorated only a few years after it was finished painting. The Last Supper is one of Leonardo’s most impressive works. The condition of this painting is quite frail, as he experimented quite drastically with the mediums he used.
Instead of painting onto a wet plaster wall with tempera paint as in a true “fresco”, Leonardo painted onto a dry wall. The painting soon began to deteriorate just a few years after he finished the painting. The painting depicts the 12 disciples of Jesus in a stark architectural setting, during their “last supper” in which Jesus informs them that one of them will soon betray him. This painting was also the center of many conspiracy theories, due its role in “The DaVinci Code”, but these theories have been invalidated by art historians. The Last Supper however; it only took him 3 years to complete.
Another reason this painting is so popular is the obvious religious significance because of Christ and his 12 apostles being depicted. Many claim that the painting has a hidden message” (Walker, J. A 2011). For instance if the painting were reflected upon itself with Jesus being the reflection point hidden images come out like a woman holding a baby and a Templar Knight seated at the table Virgin of the Rocks is the third most famous Da Vinci painting, Virgin of the Rocks. This is another religious work depicting both Jesus and John he Baptist as infants, There are two versions of this painting and they are both thought to be done by Da Vinci, The other has more religious items in it such as halos and a cross.
The one on the left is considered to be the earlier work and the one on the right is thought to be started several years after the first was finished. Both are different and yet you can see the similarities as a whole in the idea of the paintings. (ArtGroup. 2010) One interesting fact about Da Vinci is that in most of his paintings he uses models even the paintings of Christ.
He would ick omeone who he though embodied the image of Jesus rather than attempt conjure this holy image of someone he’s never seen, In this it’s almost saying that even Jesus was still a flesh and bold man. Another thing is that Leonardo would only need to see this person for a limited time and still spend years and years painting that person Da Vinci was a great man and a great artistes and this is demonstrated in all of the pieces that he worked on as well as that of his students( Art Group 2010 )Michelangelo Buonarroti (1475-1564) drew on the human body for inspiration and created works on a vast scale. He was the dominant sculptor of the High Renaissance, producing pieces such as the Pietà in St. Peter’s Cathedral (1499) and the David in his native Florence (1501-04).
He carved the latter by hand from an enormous marble block; the famous statue measures five meters high including its base. Though Michelangelo considered himself a sculptor first and foremost, he achieved greatness as a painter as well, notably with his giant fresco covering the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel, completed over four years (1508-12) and depicting various scenes from Genesis. (http://www. history.
com/topics/renaissance-art) Three of Michelangelo most famous renaissance works of art are The Statue of David, The Sistine Chapel, and The Pieta. Arguably the most famous statue in history, it is said that Michelangelo’s David is so beautiful it causes people to weep. Carved of Carrara marble, David was completed in 1504, when Michelangelo was just 29 years old. When the statue of David was placed on the square in front of the city hall (where you can now find a copy), the people of Firenze immediately identified with him, as a cunning victor over superior enemies.
To them, David was a symbol representing fortezza and ira, strength and anger. The statue had (intended) political connotations for the city state that had recently cast of the ruling of the Medici family. Note how David’s character traits, are considered more important than his victory over Goliath, which is why y Michelangelo depicted him before the battle, strong-willed and ready to fight. (Walker. A. 2011)The Sistine Chapel, Painted from 1508 to 1512, the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel contains nine scenes from the Book of Genesis.
The most famous is Michelangelo’s “Creation of Man” scene, with the finger of God reaching out to give life to Adam (Walker. A. 2011) Michelangelo was just 24 years old when he finished the Pieta, the only piece of work the artist signed. The depiction of Jesus lying across the lap of his mother Mary after the Crucifixion currently resides at St. Peter’s Basilica in Vatican City.
(Walker. A. 2011) “Leonardo Da Vinci and Michelangelo Buonarroti also shared many things in their work. Some of the elements that can be found in the work of both artists are theme, reflection of current cultural trends, political and social influence, and above all, a destiny of greatness.
The Madonna of the Rocks, The Last supper, The Mona Lisa, David, The Last Judgment, and Pietà are just a few pieces of their timeless legacy. Theirs were the accomplishments that others would strive to achieve and the world would appreciate for ages to come” (Grecinger, M. 2013) Artists such as Leonardo Da Vinci and Michelangelo Buonarroti often illustrated Christian or mythological themes in their artwork, yet, keeping with the times and often setting the example for the times, they succeeded to express secular or humanist ideas through these same pieces. Two great examples of this are The Madonna of the rocks by Leonardo and the Pieta by Michelangelo. In both cases a biblical theme is present, and in both cases the figures are shown in worldly form, with the existence of spiritual elements. Math and Science that focused on solid things that people could touch were an essential part of renaissance art and were embraced by artists such as Michelangelo and Buonarroti.
Leonardo Da Vinci created magnificent works of art which focused on these areas. Both Da Vinci and Michelangelo are believed to have created some of their most famous works of their mother’s features. Michelangelo, for example his mother’s young, pure face on the Virgin Mary, Leonardo’s used his mother’s smile on the Mona Lisa. Both artists were influenced in their work religiously. Michelangelo created The Last Judgment for the church and David for the government.
Leonardo created The Last Supper for the church and The Mona Lisa for an aristocrat. Both men battled with their greatest works repainting them time and time again in hopes of perfection, and most importantly, both men have left lasting imprints upon the world of art. Michelangelo and da Vinci have many points of similarity and differences. The one greatest similarity was – they are both artists of the Renaissance, thus meaning they both wished to return the art to its original glory in Rome. However, the biggest difference was the way they chose to do so. Michelangelo decide to turn to both drawing and sculpture (we all know his David and Sistine Chapel for example).
He decides to return the world of art back to the worshiping of a human body. He was very precise about the human form and took it to perfection. He found that the human body is a mesmerizing piece of art and wished to create his own “gods” of beauty. Leonardo da Vinci decides to take art to a science point of view. He would draw figures as research in the beginning, and only once he understood both the inside and outside of the body did he start to create masterpieces.
He was very big on details of every sort, starting from bodies and ending with cloth and landscape Michelangelo Buonarroti and Leonardo Da Vinci have both certainly left their marks on society, perhaps some of the most precise representatives of the renaissance era were formed by their hands. Their representation of the renaissance way of seeing things has forever molded our world. Though they may both have seen things somewhat differently and desired to interpret things in their own way, though they may have had their own styles and approaches, they shared so many things that it is often difficult to talk about one without mentioning the other, and even more difficult still to speak of them without mentioning their influence on the renaissance and its obvious effect on them. Whatever their differences and similarities, one thing remains Undisputable, their timeless legacy will live on in the preserved pieces to be admired and studied as they have for generations and will for generations to come.
