1452 -1519 · Italian Renaissance
Leonardo da Vinci
Complete biography, life, dates, works, scientific research and legacy of an artist who made drawing an instrument of knowledge.
Who was he?
A painter before being a symbol
Leonardo da Vinci, in Italian Leonardo da Vinci, was born in 1452 near the small Tuscan town of Vinci. Natural son of notary Ser Piero and a woman named Caterina, he grew up in his paternal grandfather's house before joining Florence. There he learned drawing, painting, sculpture and workshop techniques from Andrea del Verrocchio.
His birth is exceptionally well dated: his grandfather Antonio notes that the child was born "at three o'clock in the night" on Saturday April 15, 1452 and baptized the next day. The absence of a legitimate birth closes certain university or notarial careers to him, but it does not prevent him from accessing workshops, princely courts and religious commissions.
His career took place between Florence, Milan, the Italian courts, Rome and finally France. An extremely slow and experimental painter, he left few unanimously recognized paintings, but thousands of pages of notes on anatomy, water, flight, mechanics, light, botany and geometry.
Essential timeline
A life in six periods
The dates are sometimes approximate: Leonardo documents his research extensively, but several works were repeated for years.
Vinci and Florence
Tuscan childhood, Verrocchio workshop, first paintings and independent commissions.
First stay in Milan
Ludovico Sforza Service, Engineering Projects, Virgin of the rocks and Last Supper.
Florence and Central Italy
Cards for Caesar Borgia, Battle of Anghiari, Saint Anne and beginning of The Mona Lisa.
Return to Milan
Serving the French, major research in anatomy, hydrology and movement.
Rome
Installed at the Vatican Belvedere under the protection of Julian de Medici, he painted little and continued his experiments.
Amboise
First painter, engineer and architect to King Francis I; last years at Clos Lucé.
Florence · learning
In Verrocchio's workshop
Florence offers young Leonardo an environment where painting, sculpture, goldsmithing, architecture and party decoration are practiced together. In Verrocchio's workshop, he learns to prepare panels, grind pigments, draw from the model and construct a figure by light.
His participation in Baptism of Christ', especially the angel seen in profile, already manifests an atmospheric sweetness different from that of his master. The Annunciation, the portrait of Ginevra de' Benci and unfinished Adoration of the Magi then reveal his taste for distant landscapes, meaningful gestures and compositions in transformation.
Milan · 1482 -1499
Artist, engineer and court man
In Milan, Leonardo introduced himself to Ludovico Sforza as a designer of bridges, fortifications, weapons and shows, before mentioning his talents as a painter. He worked on a colossal equestrian monument to Francesco Sforza, never cast in bronze, and organized parties where mechanics, music and scenography met.
The order of the Virgin of the rocks inaugurates a composition enveloped in shadow and humid air. Between 1495 and 1498, The Last Supper transforms the refectory of Santa Maria delle Grazie: the real space seems to extend into the image and each apostle reacts differently to the announcement of the betrayal.
1499 -1516 · years of travel
Between war, orders and research
After the fall of Ludovico Sforza, Leonardo no longer found the stability of his first stay in Milan. This mobility, however, accelerates the circulation of his ideas.
Florence and Caesar Borgia
After Mantua and Venice, he returned to Florence. In 1502, he accompanied Caesar Borgia as a military engineer, inspected fortresses and rivers, then produced remarkable maps, including the plan of Imola in vertical view.
The Mona Lisa and Anghiari
He begins the portrait of Lisa Gherardini and receives the commission from the Battle of Anghiari for the Palazzo Vecchio. The technical test of the wall fails; the composition, soon lost, remains known through copies and studies.
Milan, then Rome
Recalled to Milan by the French administration, he delved deeper into anatomy, hydraulics and geology. In Rome from 1513, housed at the Belvedere, he continued his experiments but obtained fewer major projects than Michelangelo or Raphael.
Major works
Eight markers to read his painting
Fewer than twenty paintings are generally attached to Leonardo with varying degrees of attribution. This rarity explains the importance of each panel.
Ginevra de' Benci
An early portrait where the face, the juniper tree and the landscape form a psychological unit.
The Lady with the Ermine
Cecilia Gallerani turns her chest and gaze, giving the portrait the rhythm of a captured moment.
The Last Supper
A central perspective, thirteen figures and a wave of human reactions around the silence of Christ.
The Mona Lisa
The sfumato connects the face to the landscape and makes the expression deliberately unstable.
The Saint Anne
Three generations fit into a moving pyramid, softened by the atmosphere.
Saint John the Baptist
A figure emerges from the shadows and transforms the religious gesture into a luminous enigma.
The Adoration of the Magi
The unfinished work makes the elaboration visible in layers, repeats and movements.
Saint Jerome
The interrupted panel exposes the anatomical construction of the body, the underlying design and the first layers of paint.
Notebooks and sciences
Draw to understand
In Leonardo, drawing is not limited to preparing a painting. It is used to break down a mechanism, compare proportions, follow a whirlwind, memorize a plant or imagine a machine.
Facts and legends
What needs to be qualified
Leonardo's fame produced an image of a prophetic inventor that sometimes goes beyond what the documents show.
"He made it all up"
His notebooks combine personal observations, repetitions of previous ideas and speculative projects. A machine drawing does not always prove that it was built or that it could work.
"He wrote backwards to hide his secrets"
Left-handed, Leonardo often uses specular writing, probably practical for writing without spreading ink. He also uses ordinary writing when addressing others.
"He died in the arms of Francis I"
The scene, popularized by later accounts and paintings, is undocumented. The king was probably elsewhere on May 2, 1519.
France · 1516 -1519
The last years at Clos Lucé
Invited by François I, Leonardo crossed the Alps with several paintings and his manuscripts. He settled at the Cloux manor, today Clos Lucé, near the royal castle of Amboise. His title of "first painter, engineer and architect to the king" guaranteed him a prestigious position.
His health declined, but he continued to design architecture, festivals and hydraulic projects. He wrote his will on April 23, 1519 and died on May 2. His manuscripts and drawings mainly go to Francesco Melzi. His manuscripts and drawings go mainly to Francesco Melzi. His remains are today honored in the Saint-Hubert chapel of the Château d'Amboise, after the upheavals of the initial burial site.
Legacy
Why Leonardo remains modern
Its importance lies not in an accumulation of isolated discoveries, but in a visual method based on observation, comparison and doubt.
The sfumato
Almost imperceptible transitions replace hard contours and give faces a breathable presence.
Drawing as thought
The sheet becomes a laboratory: it simultaneously accommodates text, diagram, test, correction and invention.
Art and science combined
Anatomy, optics and movement are not ancillary hobbies; they deepen his way of representing living things.
The power of the unfinished
His interrupted works reveal an open creative process, which has become essential for understanding his method.
In the store
Find Leonardo da Vinci
A selection of hand-painted reproductions and contemporary reinterpretations related to the works discussed in this biography.
Frequently asked questions
Leonardo da Vinci in brief
What is Leonardo da Vinci's real name?
Leonardo di ser Piero da Vinci approximately means "Leonardo, son of master Piero, da Vinci". "Da Vinci" indicates its geographical origin; it is not a modern surname.
When and where was Leonardo da Vinci born?
He was born on April 15, 1452 near Vinci, Tuscany, probably in the territory of Anchiano. He was the natural son of notary Ser Piero and Caterina.
What are his most famous works?
The Mona Lisa, The Last Supper, The Virgin of the Rocks, The Lady with the Ermine, The Saint Anne, Saint John the Baptist and the drawing of Vitruvian Man are among his best-known works.
How many paintings by Leonardo remain?
The figure depends on the award criteria, but specialists generally retain fewer than twenty paintings. Some were made with the workshop or remain discussed.
Why did Leonardo write backwards?
His specular handwriting can be read using a mirror. As he was left-handed, this direction could avoid dragging his hand over the fresh ink. The idea of a systematic secret code is too simplistic.
Where did Leonardo da Vinci die and be buried?
He died at Clos Lucé, in Amboise, on May 2, 1519. First buried in the Saint-Florentin collegiate church, which disappeared in the 19th century, he is today commemorated by a burial in the Saint-Hubert chapel of the Château d 'Amboise.
Reference sources
- Royal Collection Trust - The Life of Leonardo da Vinci
- Louvre Museum - Leonardo da Vinci exhibition and collection of paintings
- Uffizi Gallery - Leonardo da Vinci room
- National Gallery of Art - Ginevra de' Benci
- National Gallery, London - Burlington House Cartoon
- Vatican Museums - Saint Jerome
- Royal Collection Trust - Anatomical Studies
Images of works in the public domain via Wikimedia Commons; legends and close dating of notices from conservative institutions. Last checked: July 28, 2026.
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