Timeless Lessons From Leonardo

Yesterday I finished reading the last chapter of Leonardo Da Vinci’s biography by Walter Isacsson. Over the last few days, I thoroughly enjoyed reading about this fascinating and enigmatic character who planted a seed in the mind of our civilisation which has flourished into the innovative society of today. When I began reading this book a couple of days ago, I had no idea of the profound impact Da Vinci’s life story would have on me. The insights I received from the biography of the Renaissance man are universally applicable. However, I believe that they would be particularly valuable to the young men of today. With the help of the superbly written book by Isacsson, here are the life lessons I took from the life of Leonardo Da Vinci.

Be curious

One of the attributes most associated with the Florentine painter is that of curiosity. This trait was not only well-known amongst his peers and in the courts of his Patrons but also across the population of the cities he lived in. The curious nature of his mind is best highlighted to us through a to-do list from the 1490s whilst he lived in Milan as part of the ducal court of Ludovico Sforza. The list reads:

• [Calculate] the measurement of Milan and Suburbs

• [Find] a book that treats Milan and its churches, which is to be had at the stationer’s on the way to Cordusio

• [Discover] the measurement of Corte Vecchio (the courtyard in the duke’s palace).

• [Discover] the measurement of the Castello (the duke’s palace itself)

• Get the master of arithmetic to show you how to square a triangle.

• Get Messer Fazio (a professor of medicine and law in Pavia) to show you about proportion.

• Get the Brera Friar (at the Benedictine Monastery in Milan) to show you De Ponderibus (a medieval text on mechanics)

• [Talk to] Giannino, the Bombardier, re. the means by which the tower of Ferrara is walled without loopholes (no one really knows what Da Vinci meant by this)

• Ask Benedetto Potinari (A Florentine Merchant) by what means they go on ice in Flanders

• Draw Milan

• Ask Maestro Antonio how mortars are positioned on bastions by day or night.

• [Examine] the Crossbow of Mastro Giannetto

• Find a master of hydraulics and get him to tell you how to repair a lock, canal and mill in the Lombard manner

• [Ask about] the measurement of the sun promised me by Maestro Giovanni Francese

• Try to get Vitolone (the medieval author of a text on optics), which is in the Library at Pavia, which deals with the mathematic.

The list of tasks is so diverse that it illustrates brilliantly Leonardo's hunger for knowledge of all kinds, regardless of his official area of expertise and profession. This is most inspirational and unprecedented when examining Leonardo’s upbringing. Born out of wedlock and never legitimated by his father, Leonardo did not have the pleasure of attending the “Latin schools” which taught the classics and humanities to aspiring professionals. This saved him from becoming an acolyte of traditional thinking and motivated him to pursue a lifelong education in all the universe has to offer. Other than a little training in commercial math which he attained at an “abacus school”, the genius was, as he dubbed himself, “an unlettered man”. The lack of formal education made him ignorant of the “facts” of the time or perhaps made them easier to question and disregard which made him trust his instinctive ability to wonder and be curious. Curiosity made Leonardo into the Renaissance man that we all regard him as and distinguished him from all the other Mastercraftsmen of that era to elevate him to a higher league of innovators. In contrast to the Renaissance period it seems, at least to me, that with the rise of technology which can give and store limitless amounts of information, curiosity is rapidly receding. Biologically, it makes sense. Wondering, questioning and investigating takes up energy. The Brain, seeing the ability to outsource that burden will do so instantly. However, not only does that make life a lot duller and rob us of the awe that comes with wondering but it also makes us susceptible to blindly subscribing to the so-called facts of today which is highly dangerous.

Avoid the fences

As mentioned before, Leonardo lacked a comprehensive education that was traditional of the times which originally seemed to breed some defensiveness but later fueled his desire for knowledge. Even after finishing his apprenticeship in Verrochio’s sculpting and painting workshop, he did not limit himself to those disciplines. By disregarding his “fences” Leonardos’ mind wandered freely which not only helped him better understand the workings of the universe, it also made him be regarded and officially appointed as an Engineer and Architect. Out of all the lessons learned from Da Vinci’s life, not letting yourself or your knowledge be categorised and limited is a learning that is deeply inspirational for me. My interests have shifted and diversified hugely in the last few years, and there have been numerous occasions where I have become disheartened when I saw jobs or projects I am interested in that require some formal training which I do not have or perhaps the language required for the Job is one that I don’t speak. I hear of this happening all too often. People putting pressure on themselves or having pressure put on them by others to follow in the footsteps of their parents or work in a field in which they got a bachelor’s or perhaps like myself at a certain stage of my life, choosing a career based on what is respectable and “most sensible”, instead of taking a moment to listen to what the heart wants. Furthermore, this way of thinking seems to be enforced by our society a lot. When we meet new people the question that gets asked right after our name is “What do you do?”, “What line of work are you in?” or “What do you do for a living?”. I always find that a super limiting question. It gives me the impression that we have a certain slot we are allowed to move around in but no further. To complicate things even more, it seems that we as individuals and as a people think our education stops once we complete a course of study or training not recognising or embracing a lifetime of learning and knowledge gained through unofficial routes, which sometimes, like in Leonardo’s case can be a lot better. Taking inspiration from Leonardo I want to no longer limit myself to the things I formally trained in or have worked on but chase the mystery of the knowledge which currently eludes me and follow a path that entices me. However, cautious not to make the mistake of simply moving from one slot to another, it’s important to remember to incorporate your previous learnings to let them mingle with your current questions and theories so the knowledge bleeds together to give you a more rounded view on life. Leonardo Da Vinci was not a painter then a engineer then an architect. But all at once. On his path to conveying the movement of the body and the soul (emotions) accurately, he began not only observing people with a keen eye but also making numerous dissections of both humans and animals. In addition, his study of optics and light informed his chiaroscuro and sfumato methods of painting which promoted him to a different tier of painter. He let his Art inform his Science and his science inform his art. This is most apparent in his masterpiece of the Mona Lisa. His investigation of facial features through methods such as dissection helped him create the most famous and enigmatic smile in history. Leonardo had great fortune, due to not being given many opportunities for formal education, that his fences were either non-existent or very blurred. It’s interesting to me that his philosophy is perfectly illustrated in his sfumato method of painting, in which he rejects the use of sharp lines to highlight an object and rather increases or decreases the potency of colour to let it flow into the surroundings smoothly. This not only is a realistic way of creating shadows but also informs us of Leonardos’ guiding principle for creating timeless masterpieces. Perhaps we could all use a little more sfumato in our lives.

Pointless

Not everything is useful. Leonardo knew this very well. But more importantly, he saw the joy and beauty in pursuing knowledge for its own sake. His study of heart valves was not necessary to paint the Mona Lisa. He did not need to know how to differ rivers to be able to portray them in his art. By letting himself pursue things that were of no use to his work he discovered far more than he could have imagined and explored the universe in ways which made him make countless more connections than anyone else in his era. Many queries he pondered for fun led him to discover scientific truths hundreds of years before others to whom we now give those credits. He filled numerous pages of his notebooks with 169 attempts to square circles and recorded 730 findings about the flow of water. He measured every segment of the human body and calculated their proportional relationship to each other. Then did the same for a horse. He drilled down on things for the simple joy of doing so. The proof lies in the fact that he never published any of his findings. He also let his reach exceed his grasp, formulating ideas and drafting designs that never came into existence, like his human-powered flying machine. Some somethings never come into existence and that is fine. 500 years later nobody has been able to find an answer to some of the riddles he tried to solve. That’s pretty impressive. Question for the sake of doing so, learn to formulate them well. It is an art in itself. Who knows, perhaps some of your questions will outlast your creations. As the world seems to be moving faster every day and our time management becomes evermore refined, we always question the purpose of things, only allowing them into our schedule if they are “productive” or “useful”. Leonardo is proof that you can spend your time with “pointless” matters and still create, innovate and secure yourself in the history books. Time will stay long enough for anyone who lets it.

Marinate

This is a topic that I could and most likely will dedicate a whole separate post to. It is something that Leonardo was a master in and what I think is the greatest skill in his Arsenal. To marinate is not to procrastinate or do nothing. It is an art which combines meditation and observation. It requires vast amounts of patience, serenity and a non-judgmental approach. Marinating in his theories, often for years, he found different ways to pose a question and make subtle tweaks as he was informed by his observations and research. He also marinated in regard to his paintings. Through technological analysis such as IR Reflectogrpaphy, we now know that he began working on the Mona Lisa in 1503 and took it with him when we moved across Italy and France, slowly over the years, adding fine brushstrokes when inspired to do so. It was found in his studio in 1519 when he died, probably still awaiting the finishing touches of her master’s brush. The friars of the refectory in which Leonardo painted The Last Supper would recall the painter coming to work on the piece but some days he would arrive, stare at his work for an hour then add one brush stroke to an apostle’s face and leave not returning for days. By marinating, Leonardo created paintings that stood the test of time. Although his patrons often pressured him to speed up his work and abandon his approach to painting, he never did, which led to several legal disputes. To marinate, contrary to belief, takes resilience. You must fight against the threat of time rushing past, your restlessness and the chaos of the world and its demands. It was not easy back then and it seems to have only gotten more difficult with our desire to consume almost as rapidly increasing as our ability to produce products. This makes the skill of marinating in regard to your work, your day, your thoughts and your emotions increasingly important to not only distinguish yourself from others but also to enjoy your life and the beauties of every moment.

Rose coloured tunics

The final insight that I gained from Leonardo is to be unapologetically authentic. The Florentine painter was known for many things during his lifetime, one of the most amusing ones is that of neglecting the traditional attire which was tights, a vest and an overcoat, Leonardo chose to sport a knee-length rose-coloured tunic. This highlighted his desire to be different and to express himself freely. This was also apparent when it came to his work. Isabella d’Este was one of the biggest art patrons of the Renaissance and throughout his career she begged Leonardo to paint her portrait, offering whatever payment he wanted. The painter remained unmoved, refusing to paint her. Why? It seemed as though he simply didn’t want to. Instead of choosing to paint one of the most influential women of his time, he opted to paint a florentine silk merchant’s young wife, Lisa del Giocondo whose portrait is now the Mona Lisa. Leonardos’ refusal to paint commissions he found boring and his ability to withstand pressure and threats from his patrons when they wanted paintings done is another reason we remember Leonardo Da Vinci as an Icon rather than just a master painter of the Renaissance.

As someone who has read his biography and spent time looking into his life I can safely say that although Leonardo Da Vinci was a genius, he was most definitely not perfect. The insights I gained from his life are so powerful because they are so simple. The most striking traits that we remember about Leonardo are ones we can easily emulate and cultivate to enrich our own lives and uniquely bring out our Renaissance man deep within everyone of us.