Leonardo da Vinci

Leonardo da Vinci is an excellent artist of all time who rose to prominence during the High Renaissance era due to the development of his great artworks. He created the most replicated religious artwork, the Last Supper, as well as his most well-known painting, the Mona Lisa. Leonardo became Italy's most popular painter with his use of the sfumato technique. During the High Renaissance era in Italy, Leonardo da Vinci's use of sfumato style grew (1452-1519). The use of Leonardo da Vinci's sfumato painting style was instrumental in the flawless conception of the Mona Lisa artwork and its influence on future artists. The sfumato style that was developed and adopted by Leonardo da Vinci was influenced by the high Renaissance period (Boddy-Evans). The High Renaissance period was characterized by a renewed interest in the development of classical learning of the values of ancient Greece and Rome. The period was also marked by the development of the printing press, discovery and exploration, philosophy, literature and artwork painting. Therefore, the development of the sfumato style of painting by Leonardo da Vinci was promoted by the need to increase the expression of the classical Greco-Roman traditions to the world (Boddy-Evans). For instance, the Last Supper painting spread the importance of Roman Catholic traditions in the High Renaissance period.
The primary purpose of the development of the sfumato style of painting by Leonardo da Vinci involved the revival of the Renaissance art to reflect the classical Greco-Roman traditions in the Italian society. However, the focus of Leonardo da Vinci through the sfumato style involved the creation of a different look and feel in the painting. The sfumato style was important for the reflection of mood, atmosphere, and depth in the painting. For instance, Leonardo da Vinci's sfumato style was very influential in the development of the Mona Lisa painting to illustrate the smiling and the somber mood (Boddy-Evans). No bright colors were used, but the painting still managed to reflect the mood of Mona Lisa.
The sfumato style forms one of the significant canonical painting styles developed during the Renaissance period. The term sfumato was developed from the Italian word "fumo" which means fumes or smoke, but the English translation means blurred, soft or vague (Principle Gallery). The sfumato style in a painting or drawing, therefore, entails the use of fine shading to produce soft and imperceptible transitions between the colors used and tone created in the painting. The materials used in the style include oil paint produced from natural pigment, tempera, and palette and oil canvas. Furthermore, the application of the sfumato style by Leonardo da Vinci included the creation of subtle gradations without the use of lines or the borders to create the perfect transition from light to dark areas (Principle Gallery). The application of the sfumato style has been influenced by several artists including Bartolommeo, Piero di Cosimo, Raphael and Leonardo da Vinci. All the artists using the sfumato style in painting have a common goal, which entails providing focus in the foreground of the Image. For instance, in the Mona Lisa painting, Leonardo da Vinci uses a blurred dreamy quality on the main painting and a more blurred landscape to enhance the illusion of depth to increase focus on Mona Lisa.
Leonardo da Vinci was born in the village of Vinci, in the Western region of Florence, Italy on April 15, 1452. He was born to Ser Piero da Vinci, a public official, and a local woman Caterina. Leonardo grew in his father's house, which was characterized by paintings and led him to be immersed the painting tradition in the town. Based on his love for artwork, his father apprenticed him to the leading artist in Florence, Andrea del Verrocchio, when he was 15 and gained a lot of knowledge in Renaissance art. At the age of 20, Leonardo da Vinci gained the most significant opportunity to become a master in the Guild of St. Luke a prominent union for artists and doctors in Florence (Da Vinci). Leonardo gained education in anatomy, engineering, and geometry, which he highly applied in his works. His first recognized work involved a pen and ink drawing called the Arno valley in 1473. However, he managed to develop several drawings, sculptures, and paintings over the years. Most of his highly recognized works include Mona Lisa, The Last Supper, The Virgin of Rocks, Francesco Melzi, St. Jerome in the Wilderness, Adoration of the Magi, St. John the Baptist, etc. Throughout his career, various aspects influenced Leonardo da Vinci. The most influential part involved the apprenticeship under Andrea del Verrocchio from where he gained the original knowledge in the artwork. Secondly, Florence was the hometown of several artists, especially Alberti through his thesis and della Francesca through the study of light highly influenced Leonardo da Vinci's artworks and studies. Lastly, Donalleto's painting of David Marble provides great humanist influence on future works of Leonardo such a St. John the Baptist.
Leonardo da Vinci's painting, Mona Lisa is the most known artwork of all time among his collection of art. The Mona Lisa portrait contains a woman smiling and in a somber mood. Leonardo da Vinci focused on the use of smoky colors that adds to her allure. Furthermore, in the portrait Leonardo has highly applied the use of gentle lighting, to show correctly the facial features through a blend of color and tone. The portrait has long been associated with Lisa Gherardini, Florentine cloth merchant Francesco del's wife Giocondo (Scailliérez). The emblematic smile on Mona Lisa's face represents the visual idea of happiness as the central motif of the painting (Scailliérez). The notion of happiness as presented by the painting provides the ideal nature of the painting to the society. Furthermore, the Mona Lisa painting has warm colors on the chest to represent the warm that comes with happiness in the lives of people or the society. The artwork represents the most superior of Leonardo da Vinci's artworks based on the ability to portray the instant message as well as the beauty that it brings to the viewer's mind.
In conclusion, the application of Leonardo da Vinci's sfumato style of painting was influential in the perfect development of the Mona Lisa painting and its influence on the future artists. The characteristics of the sfumato style of painting are highly important to bring focus to the painting as well as deliver the direct and powerful message to the viewers. Through the sfumato style in the Mona Lisa painting, it has remained to be the most influential work developed by Leonardo da Vinci during the Renaissance art period.


Work cited
Boddy-Evans, Marion. "What Palettes And Techniques Did Leonardo Da Vinci Use?." Thoughtco, 2017, https://www.thoughtco.com/old-masters-techniques-leonardo-da-vinci-2578611.
Da Vinci, Leonardo. The notebooks of Leonardo da Vinci. Vol. 1. Courier Corporation, 2012, http://www.mindfiesta.com/mf/pdf/books/2.pdf
Principle Gallery. "Technique Tuesdays: Sfumato." Principle Gallery, 2015, https://principlearttalk.com/2015/02/17/technique-tuesdays-sfumato/.
Scailliérez, Cécile. "Mona Lisa - Portrait Of Lisa Gherardini, Wife Of Francesco Del Giocondo | Louvre Museum | Paris." Louvre.Fr, 2017, http://www.louvre.fr/en/oeuvre-notices/mona-lisa-portrait-lisa-gherardini-wife-francesco-del-giocondo.