Leonardo Da Vinci

Whether it is his astounding influence on modern invention, or another one of his renowned art relics, Leonardo da Vinci is an omnipresent entity here in Firenze. He first made himself prevalent during our visit to The Leonardo da Vinci Museum, big shocker! Surrounded by Leonardo’s famous sketches and models of his original mechanisms, I was immediately inspired to write a blog post! During our da Vinci escapade I learned some surprising stuff. For starters, he manufactured everything from an automated loom to an automaton. When Leonardo wasn’t busy inventing the first armored tank or the next flying machine, he dabbled in painting, and whipped up The Mona Lisa, The Last Supper, and Madonna of the Rocks. (I feel like a slacker!)

After my stroll down overachiever lane, I constantly encountered the ubiquitous Leonardo. Maybe I wasn’t looking before, but he began popping up more often than Fiats in an Italian Piazza, and there are many Fiats in an Italian Piazza (they are everywhere)! Between Vitruvian Man t-shirts and da Vinci miscellany sold by the nagging street vendors, there was no escaping Leonardo. I’m even currently reading The Da Vinci Code by accident! Better yet, I just realized that I’m writing this blog post in an airport called Leonardo Da Vinci Airport!

Although it seems impossible, I think there is method to this “coincidental” craziness! The thing is, Da Vinci tackled so many groundbreaking endeavors, that the reason for his popularity today remains a matter of opinion. According to the average tourist like yours truly, Leonardo most likely gained his acclaim with the help of Mona Lisa and numerous mechanical marvels. But, to the averagely luny conspiracy buff, Leonardo’s intriguing personal life and dubious involvement with a secret society known as the Priory of Sion, may be the correct explanation!

Although a genius, Leonardo’s life was far from perfect. He was born a bastard. Birthed by the mistress of his married father, Leonardo’s life started out with plenty of drama. Although his father loved and protected Leonardo, he was left with no money or possessions when his beloved father died. Cheated out of a hefty sum of money by his devious siblings, Leonardo constantly needed money to fund his profound experiments and projects. But the drama doesn’t end there! In addition to Leonardo’s financial problems, he possessed an abject rivalry with Michelangelo, the preferable, younger, and more talented craftsman.

Despite the obvious, I find Leonardo da Vinci riveting because all my life I have dreamt of being an inventor. Leonardo is the ultimate entrepreneurial inspiration because of his blatant brilliance and unyielding devotion to invention. Recently, I went to a weeklong summer camp called Leadership+Design, where I learned that the intersection of art, design, creativity and innovation combine in powerful ways. Sometimes together, these elements create revolutionary ideas that can have a significant impact on potentially everyone. From Florence onward I will remember da Vinci’s novel recipe: a potent mixture of art, design, creativity, innovation, and persistence. And with it, maybe one day, I will cook something great.