Leonardo da Vinci
Observation of nature, experience and study of shape transitions.
Key ideas
Leonardo combined artistic practice with the study of the body, light, water and movement. In painting, soft transitions of chiaroscuro connect form with the environment. Sfumato is not a simple blur: it helps to avoid a rigid boundary between volume and air.
Looking deeper
Consider his works along with the process of work and the state of preservation. “The Last Supper” was made using an experimental technique and is not an ordinary fresco on wet plaster. The myth of the universal genius does not replace the analysis of a specific solution.
"Mona Lisa"; "The Last Supper"; drawings and notebooks.
Find the work in the museum's official catalog and start with a description of the visible details.Find where the edge of the figure is visible and where it disappears into the background.
Useful terms
- Sfumato
- Soft, almost imperceptible transitions of tone and color, softening the boundaries of form. Particularly associated with the painting of Leonardo.
External educational material or museum catalogue. The above review is not a literal translation of the source.