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Autobiography Writing of Great Artist Leonardo Da Vinci The word polymath is only applicable to a handful of people in the world. Leonardo Da Vinci is perhaps the first person in the history of humankind for whom this word was used, and with time, it is proven how appropriate the word is for him. Even to this day, researchers are trying to discover new information about this enigmatic figure of the high renaissance period. From being one of the greatest artists of all time to an avant-garde inventor of his time, Da Vinci was known for a lot of things. Although the world knows his name mostly for his two-era defining painting, "Mona Lisa" and "The Last Supper", he also worked on a number of other subjects such as anatomy, botany, astronomy, painting, cartography, and paleontology. Such a wide range of expertise made him of the most enigmatic figures of human history. He is also part of countless historical fictions and conspiracy theories. However, it is not uncommon for a man of his stature. Who Was Leonardo Da Vinci? The great artist and scholar Leonardo Da Vinci was born on 15 April 1452 in the Tuscan hill town of Vinci. His original name was Leonardo di ser Piero da Vinci. It is pretty difficult to dig out information about his childhood since there are no valid documents to support most of the facts. Most of the things regarding his childhood are often covered in myths and legends and since there is no particular biography of Da Vinci, validating these facts is quite challenging. However, the fantastic achievements he achieved later in his life made him this enigmatic figure in history. He was mainly prolific during the high renaissance period. While most people are only aware of his incredible abilities as a painter, few people know that he had also worked as a draughtsman, engineer, scientist, theorist, sculptor, and architect. Later, while researching about him, a few researchers unearthed his notebooks, which left everyone in absolute shock. In his notebook, one could find drawings related to various subjects like human anatomy, botany, astronomy, painting, cartography, and paleontology. In one of the parchments recovered from his personal collection, it was discovered that he was the first person to draw the design of a machine which is now known as the helicopter. There were even some drawings depicting other machines which can be used in war to massacre the troop of your enemies. Writing an autobiography of such a personality is never easy; hence, I will only try to cover some of the most important and prolific stages of his life. Florence was 20 miles away… I found out later in my life, probably when I was about five, that I was born on 15 April 1452 in this small town from which Florence was only 20 miles away. I had always wondered what it was like in the city. What kind of people lived there? But my curiosity was not because of any high-ambition but purely out of the desire to explore more. The things that I didn't know had always made me think and made me question about life, about the definition of art, and the definition of beauty. Painting used to come naturally to me, but maybe I was searching for my own expression; I was searching for myself and a new form. Probably that's why I wanted to visit the city of Florence. I wanted to get close to what was happening there. Finally, the chance presented itself to me. In the mid-1460s, my family decided to move to Florence. This was around that time when Florence was slowly becoming the center of Christian Humanist thought and culture. I remember I was around the age of 14 when I had first stepped into the studio as a Garzone (studio boy) in the workshop of Andrea del Verrocchio. He was very famous or perhaps the most famous Florentine painter and sculptor of his time. But at the same time, I had also heard that he had recently lost his master and his mentor for ages, the great sculptor Donatello. It was exactly what I had thought about. I wanted to find my own style and expression, and Verrocchio had played an enormous role in that. I was made an apprentice by the age of 17, and I continued my training for seven years. It is where I had learned most of the things about art, painting, and sculpting. My master was an expert in many things, and thus, he made me learn various kinds of technical skills like drafting, metallurgy, chemistry, plaster casting, metalworking, leatherworking, mechanics, and woodwork. But he had equal importance for artistic skills as well. Hence, I was taught the skills of drawing, sculpting, painting, and modeling. At this time, I never started to work on my own compositions, but I always used to help others finish their work. Like, I had contributed a lot with Verrocchio, especially on his painting called The Baptism Of Christ. On this painting, we used something called tempera, a new form of oil painting. It wasn't until 1473 that I had started to work on my own compositions. My earliest work was a pen-and-ink drawing of the Arno valley. I always thought that the rive Arno could be a navigable channel between Florence and Pisa. After some unfinished commissioned work here in the city, I decided to travel to Milan. I had worked there from 1482 until 1499. During this period, one of the most significant of my works was Virgin of the Rocks for the Confraternity of the Immaculate Conception. But it was also the time when I was trying to understand everything that was around me, and I wanted to understand my expression as well. The human anatomy has always fascinated me, and that's precisely why I wanted to understand the proportion of the human body. Whatever I had learned from books and scriptures, I wanted to validate them after meeting the models of Milan. This led to the drawing and additional notes of the Vitruvian Man. It was actually created as 'The proportions of the human body according to Vitruvius.' The notes, along with the drawing, were based on the works of Roman architect Vitruvius. This drawing was very special to me because through this, I wanted to present my understanding of proportions and the combination of Mathematics and Art. This motive later became a very famous thing of my period, perhaps known as the Renaissance Period. The human figure is perhaps the most remarkable creation of nature, and through my work, I wanted to establish this, while my work being an analogy to the creation of nature. The study of human proportion and anatomy has intrigued me from childhood. How do our muscles work beneath our skin is something that has always fascinated me. But not just the human body but every creation of nature like a plant or a bird, one can see this excellent symmetry. From every cell in the human body to the most complex-looking plant bodies, it can be found everywhere. Thus, I had studied dead bodies, plants, animals, birds; their shape, size, and proportion have intrigued me a lot. I had made notes of all this in my notebook. But what if we use these ideas to create machines? What if these ideas are used to create machines that can change the course of war or even the course of human history? Man has always wanted to fly like the birds high over the cloud. I had studied very closely the anatomy of a bird and how its wings work their way through the wind. Based on my findings, I had designed a machine that will allow a human being to fly just like a bird. I never had enough resources to build these machines in reality out of the pages of my notebook. But I do hope that someday these pages might help someone get some idea and create these machines in the future. In the 16th century, while working on finding new techniques, I stumbled upon a new way to use shadows in a painting. It was later called "sfumato," or Leonardo's smoke. Once successfully used, this technique can create a sense of intrigue in the composition, making it difficult to understand the true expression of the character. Perhaps the most successful use of this technique was done by me in a small portrait I had made around this time. It was titled as La Gioconda. But now, I believe the painting is known as "Mona Lisa." Conclusion The legacy of Leonardo Da Vinci goes beyond his painting of "Mona Lisa" or "The Last Supper." The fact that even to this day, researchers are talking about him and trying to discover new information is what makes him still relevant. From historical fiction to top bestsellers, Vinci and his creations are everywhere. This is what cements his legacy forever. You can check our few interesting essays for further study,Essay on global warmingEssay on festivalsEssay on friendshipEssay on loveEssay on leadershipThank you letter Types of letter Letter on justice How to write a letter