Contrasting Leonardo Da Vinci and Michelangelo

Contrasting Leonardo da Vinci and Michelangelo

Leonardo da Vinci and Michelangelo Buonarroti were two distinguished personalities during the Renaissance period. These two artists have presented great pieces in the field of fine art. The masterpieces of Leonard da Vinci and Michelangelo stunned the whole world of humanism and art division that even today, the value of such paintings and sculptures are way out of human comprehension. The works of Leonardo da Vinci and Michelangelo influenced the art of the 16th century in numerous ways. Although there were some similarities in Leonardo da Vinci and Michelangelo's works, their differences and uniqueness is what made their works great masterpieces of the 15th and 16th century. The art these two artists created was very influential during this time.

The climax of the late 15th century came in the work of Leonard da Vinci. Leonardo da Vinci can easily be referred to as the Renaissance man. He is the perfect example of the Renaissance man because Leonardo da Vinci was interested in and well informed about many subjects. Like many artists of the renaissance, Leonardo da Vinci was a sculptor and an architect, as well as a painter. He was considered more or less as, the greatest skilled painter in renaissance times (Beck, 1993). Leonardo was also a highly accomplished scientist. Among other things, Leonardo was well schooled and grew up as an apprentice under other great artist. He became skilled at music and jam-packed notebook after notebook with his thoughts, philosophies and fascinating theories of the world around him. Although Leonardo da Vinci was a crafty sculptor, he considered painting as the highest form of art, and did so for several reasons. As a scientist, Leonardo da Vinci could not be idealistic because he viewed the world as it was. He found purpose in how the world worked and how things appeared, such as depth and perspective. He used these observations to represent realism in his art. Leonardo da Vinci used his skills to make his paintings as real and lifelike as humanly possible. He believed there were restrictions, when it came to sculptures. With painting, Leonardo da Vinci had endless possibilities. Having these boundless opportunities at his fingertips Leonardo da Vinci had the ability to add certain symbols, features and characteristics to his paintings. In Leonardo da Vinci paintings a common theme and a staple of the renaissance era was geometric shapes. The universal sign of the holy trinity is a triangle and this was often seen in Leonardo da Vinci paintings (Kleiner, 2010). He would also give each being personal traits and facial features. This was another feature Leonardo da Vinci would use to enhance his pieces and make them more humanistic (Kleiner, 2010). Leonardo da Vinci creative work was a reflection of all the distinguishing features of the Renaissance in its higher stages. His work was new art and a new attitude towards reality that was different from the religious outlook. Art was no longer a mere illustration of religious books, it turned towards nature. Painting became a window to the world. Also, Leonardo da Vinci brought science and art together. He considered them two beginnings that overlap to a great degree. Leonardo da Vinci scientific exploration contributed to his achievements as a painter (Kleiner, 2010). Leonardo's extraordinary