Leonardo da Vinci (15.04.1452 - 02.05.1519) - Italian artist.
Leonardo da Vinci was a prominent Italian polymath, sculptor, artist, cartographer and writer. This man was ultimately talented in many fields: music, art, mathematics, geography, anatomy, literature. His paintings include “The Vitruvian Man” (1485), “The Last Supper” (1498), “Mona Lisa” (1503-1507), “ The Virgin and Child with St. Anne” (1510). Da Vinci was born on April the 15th, 1452, in the Tuscan hill town Vinci not far from Florence. He was the son of a prosperous notary Piero and a peasant woman Caterina. He was brought up by his father, who later married a rich and noble woman. This marriage was childless. That’s why Leonardo was taken away from his mother and brought up by da Vinci family.
His father married several times during his life and had twelve children all in all. He hoped that Leonardo will continue their family tradition, but the boy didn’t take any interest in law. Instead, he wanted to study the art of painting. In 1472, he was accepted by the guild of painters in Florence. One year later he drew his first painting - a landscape with a valley sketch. In 1481-82 he was hired by the governor of Milan to arrange court festivals and to do part-time engineering work. In his works da Vinci created a variety of options for the modern ideal city. He had an immense impact on the architecture of Italy. At that time Leonardo tried himself in various scientific fields and almost everywhere had success.
In 1517, he was invited to France as a court painter for the French king Francis I. As the French court tried actively to take up the culture of Italian Renaissance, da Vince was surrounded by owe and veneration. However, as the time showed this was more of an external show. In two years’ time the artist lost all his strength and got seriously ill. In May of 1519 he died in the castle near Amboise, France. Despite the short life, Leonardo da Vince managed to become a recognizable symbol of Renaissance and one of the most famous painters of all times. His works and manuscripts are priceless. They were published in full only in XIX-XX centuries. All his notes were supplemented by drawings and thorough explanation.