James Lucas Profile picture
Mar 28, 2024 31 tweets 10 min read Read on X
Leonardo da Vinci's drawings - a thread 🧵

1. Vitruvian Man Image
2. Study of an Angel

The soul of this young girl seems almost visible in her eyes.

Even if da Vinci only produced about 20 paintings in his lifetime, we have over 13,000 pages of his notes and drawings. Image
3. Fetus in the Womb

More than 500 years ago, Leonardo correctly depicted the human fetus in its proper position inside a dissected uterus. Image
4. Anatomical Studies of the Shoulder

Leonardo dissected more than 30 bodies of both genders and all ages in his lifetime, leaving behind many stunning - and incredibly accurate - anatomical drawings. Image
5. Anatomical Studies

His sketches were so precise that many are still used to illustrate medical textbooks.

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6. Head of a Young Woman (La Scapigliata) Image
7. Profile of an Old Man Image
8. Studies of Crabs Image
9. Study of a Child Image
10. Study of Horses Image
11. Study of Hands Image
12. Ornithopter

Leonardo studied the flight of birds for years, and then he famously made designs for his "ornithopter", a flying machine.

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13. Helicopter

In the late 1480s, he even drew his design for an "aerial screw", a flying machine which is incredibly similar to a modern helicopter. Image
14. Dragon Striking Down Lion Image
15. The Skull

This iconic drawing is universally admired for its accuracy and proportion. Image
16. Leonardo's self-propelled cart, considered the ancestor of the modern automobile. Image
17. Study of Five Grotesque Heads Image
18. Study of the graduations of light and shade on a sphere (chiaroscuro). Image
19. The organs of a woman's body Image
20. Comparison of the leg of a man and a dog Image
21. Walking on water

A peculiar method of walking on water using skis made of cork and paddle-like poles. Image
22. Landscape drawing for Santa Maria Della Neve & botanical drawings

"The painter’s mind is a copy of the divine mind, since it operates freely in creating the many kinds of animals, plants, fruits, landscapes, countrysides, ruins, and awe-inspiring places."

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23. Cat drawings Image
24. Leonardo also produced several extremely accurate maps, such as the town plan of Imola. Image
25. Portrait of a Man in Red Chalk

This iconic drawing is widely regarded as a self-portrait of Leonardo da Vinci at the age of 60. Image
26. Studies of Water Passing Obstacles Image
27. Female Head Image
28. Study for the Last Supper

Before painting his timeless masterpiece, Leonardo drew a few preparatory sketches that depict many different variations of the apostles' poses and gestures. Image
29. Heads of an old man and a youth Image
30. Muscles of the Torso and Back

These drawings give a clear picture of how the musculature lies over the ribcage and around the abdomen. In the notes, Leonardo also indicates exactly how the muscles are connected to the skeleton and to each other. Image
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