Growing
up in his father's Vinci home, Leonardo had access to scholarly
texts owned by family and friends. He was also exposed to Vinci's
longstanding painting tradition, and when he was about 15 his
father apprenticed him to the renowned workshop of Andrea del
Verrochio in Florence. Even as an apprentice, Leonardo demonstrated
his colossal talent. Indeed, his genius seems to have seeped
into a number of pieces produced by the Verrocchio's workshop
from the period 1470 to 1475. For example, one of Leonardo's
first big breaks was to paint an angel in Verrochio's "Baptism
of Christ," and Leonardo was so much better than his master's
that Verrochio allegedly resolved never to paint again. Leonardo
stayed in the Verrocchio workshop until 1477 when he set up a
shingle for himself.
In
search of new challenges and the big bucks, he entered the service
of the Duke of Milan in 1482, abandoning his first commission
in Florence, "The Adoration of the Magi". He spent
17 years in Milan, leaving only after Duke Ludovico Sforza's
fall from power in 1499. It was during these years that Leonardo
hit his stride, reaching new heights of scientific and artistic
achievement.
The
Duke kept Leonardo busy painting and sculpting and designing
elaborate court festivals, but he also put Leonardo to work designing
weapons, buildings and machinery. From 1485 to 1490, Leonardo
produced a studies on loads of subjects, including nature, flying
machines, geometry, mechanics, municipal construction, canals
and architecture (designing everything from churches to fortresses).
His studies from this period contain designs for advanced weapons,
including a tank and other war vehicles, various combat devices,
and submarines. Also during this period, Leonardo produced his
first anatomical studies. His Milan workshop was a veritable
hive of activity, buzzing with apprentices and students.
Alas,
Leonardo's interests were so broad, and he was so often compelled
by new subjects, that he usually failed to finish what he started.
This lack of "stick-to-it-ness" resulted in his completing
only about six works in these 17 years, including "The Last
Supper" and "The Virgin on the Rocks," and he
left dozens of paintings and projects unfinished or unrealized
(see "Big Horse" in sidebar). He spent most of his
time studying science, either by going out into nature and observing
things or by locking himself away in his workshop cutting up
bodies or pondering universal truths.
Between
1490 and 1495 he developed his habit of recording his studies
in meticulously illustrated notebooks. His work covered four
main themes: painting, architecture, the elements of mechanics,
and human anatomy. These studies and sketches were collected
into various codices and manuscripts, which are now hungrily
collected by museums and individuals (Bill Gates recently plunked
down $30 million for the Codex Leicester!).
Back
to Milan... after the invasion by the French and Ludovico Sforza's
fall from power in 1499, Leonardo was left to search for a new
patron. Over the next 16 years, Leonardo worked and traveled
throughout Italy for a number of employers, including the dastardly
Cesare Borgia. He traveled for a year with Borgia's army as a
military engineer and even met Niccolo Machiavelli, author of "The
Prince." Leonardo also designed a bridge to span the "golden
horn" in Constantinople during this period and received
a commission, with the help of Machiavelli, to paint the "Battle
of Anghiari."
About
1503, Leonardo reportedly began work on the "Mona Lisa." On
July 9, 1504, he received notice of the death of his father,
Ser Piero. Through the contrivances of his meddling half brothers
and sisters, Leonardo was deprived of any inheritance. The death
of a beloved uncle also resulted in a scuffle over inheritance,
but this time Leonardo beat out his scheming siblings and wound
up with use of the uncle's land and money.
From
1513 to 1516, he worked in Rome, maintaining a workshop and undertaking
a variety of projects for the Pope. He continued his studies
of human anatomy and physiology, but the Pope forbade him from
dissecting cadavers, which truly cramped his style.
Following
the death of his patron Giuliano de' Medici in March of 1516,
he was offered the title of Premier Painter and Engineer and
Architect of the King by Francis I in France. His last and perhaps
most generous patron, Francis I provided Leonardo with a cushy
job, including a stipend and manor house near the royal chateau
at Amboise.
Although
suffering from a paralysis of the right hand, Leonardo was still
able to draw and teach. He produced studies for the Virgin Mary
from "The Virgin and Child with St. Anne", studies
of cats, horses, dragons, St. George, anatomical studies, studies
on the nature of water, drawings of the Deluge, and of various
machines.
