Murals

"Learning never exhausts the mind." - Leonardo da Vinci

A mural is a painting on a wall or ceiling. Usually, it is either applied directly onto the surface or painted on a canvas which is then fixed or cemented onto the wall. More rarely, it is painted onto panels that become part of the wall.

Da Vinci’s Painting Technique

Throughout his years (1452-1519), Leonardo da Vinci employed a variety of techniques from painting on a dry stone wall to using wet plaster depending on the work surface he was commissioned to paint. Leonardo da Vinci typically painted with oil paint that he made by hand from ground pigments; later in his career, he worked with tempera made from egg whites. His work surface typically would be a canvas or board, or sometimes stone when painting a mural

As Da Vinci began a painting, he would start by covering the canvas with a pale gray or brown, using the neutral color for underpainting. Atop of the underpainting, da Vinci would layer transparent glazes within a small range of tones. Typically, the colors used were natural hues; da Vinci never used intense or bold colors or tints in contrasting colors. By using such a small range of colors, he was able to give his finished works a more cohesive appearance.

Da Vinci's Famous Murals

"Mona Lisa" by Leonardo da Vinci (1517)

One of his most well-known paintings, the Mona Lisa, displays some of the techniques used by da Vinci. For instance, the use of sfumato gave the painting an illusion of somberness and mystery, while his choice of color palette reflects why her lips and eyes are so pale.

The "Last Supper" by Leonardo da Vinci (1495-'98)

In The Last Supper, da Vinci used tempera over an underpainting made from ground pigments called gesso, which caused the painting to become almost unrecognizable 100 years later. He also painted directly on the stone wall surface rather than painting on wet plaster, as was the norm, which means it is not a true fresco painting.

The Last Supper has gone through many attempts at restoration. The earliest attempt was in the 18th century and they were all failures. They were failures because the mural was not painted with a oil base medium. The restores all tried to recreate Da Vinic's work instead of trying to preserve what was already there. The latest try at restoring The Last supper was in 1999 by Pinin Brambilla, Her job was to stop any more deterioration, and she was able to do that.

A Head of a Young Woman (1508)

Proportion of the Human Figure

                                                                               The Battle of Anghiari (1503-06)

                                                       
The Battle of Anghiari also known as "The Lost Leonardo" displays many of Da Vinci painting techniques being painted on a stone wall, and he used oil paints. The Battle of Anghiari is consider to be the mystery that can't be solved.



Unseen Da Vinci's Murals

This unseen work by Da Vinci was discover while the Sforza Castle was being restored. The mural was beneath 17 layers of white wash. Unlike Da Vinci other murals this one was drawn directly on the stone wall instead of being painted. It was painted while DaVinci was a courted artist for the Duke of Milan in the late 1400's.


Authors:  Kimmie Kolvitz, Tamkeen Syeda


The head of a Woman is also known as La Scapigliata. It is a painting in oil on wood dating from around 1500 and can be found in the Galleria Nazionale di Parma, Italy. Alexander Nagel wrote of the painting “The eyes do not focus on any outward object, and they give the impression that they will remain where they are: they see through the filter of an inner state, rather than receive immediate impressions from the outside word.” 



 The Vitruvian Man, also known as L’Uomo Vitruviano is a drawing circa 1490 which is accompanied by notes based on the work of the architect Vitruvius. The drawing is pen and ink on paper, which displays a man in two superimposed positions. This piece is also located in the Gallerie dell’Accademia in Venice, Italy. Like most paper works, it is only displayed to the public on occasion.


Author: Cadence Giazzon