Leonardo Da Vinci's lasting influence on Western society Essay

Leonardo Da Vinci's lasting influence on Western society - Essay Example nth- and sixteenth-century Europe is represented as a repudiation of medieval values in favor of the revival of the culture of ancient Greece and Rome† (Campbell, 2004). The Renaissance period is characterized by a renewed focus on learning and knowledge. This renewed focus on learning and knowledge encouraged the curious Leonardo to explore all his interests in nature and life. Discovering how things work had fascinated him since he was a young boy in the Italian countryside. More than just painting, Leonardo displayed a particular genius in investigating many subjects, constantly learning, observing and making hypotheses that he would test out whenever he could. â€Å"His four main areas of study resulted in what are known as his Treatises, on painting, architecture, mechanics and human anatomy† (Mason, 2004: 21). His method of approaching these topics was vastly different from that of his forebears. Rather than relying on the traditions of the past to inform him about the world around him, Leonardo developed many new ways of looking at the world, thus having a significant impact upon Western society as we know it today. It is undeniable that Leonardo developed numerous painting techniques in his well-known works that have changed the way artists depicted the world, but he also revolutionized several other fields, paving the way, in many cases, for the developments of technology we now enjoy in the Western world. Although most of Leonardo’s architectural ideas were never carried out, his plans for a re-design of a city included a series of waterways that would function to keep the city streets clean. This plan included a series of locks, canals and paddlewheels that would function to wash the streets on a regular basis (Whitcombe, 2004). â€Å"He proposed to build a new city, breaking it up into towns of 30,000 each; there would be watercourses to carry off the sewage and the streets would be broad and airy, the width equal to the average height of the