paintings. An artist that uses this fresco method must work quickly. Leonardo wanted to work slowly, revising his work, and use shadows-which would have been impossible in using fresco painting. He invented a new technique that involved coating the wall with a compound that he had created. This compound, which was supposed to protect the paint and hold it in place did not work, and soon after its completion the paint began to flake away. For this reason The Last Supper still exists, but in poor condition (Gilbert 46). Leonardo had at many times merged his inventive and creative capabilities to enhance life and improve his works. Although his experiments with plastering and painting failed, they showed his dissatisfaction with an accepted means and his creativity and courage to experiment with a new and untried idea. Experimentation with traditional techniques is evident in his drawings as well. During Leonardo’s 18 year stay in Milan he also produced other paintings and drawings, but most have been lost. He created stage designs for theater, architectural drawings, and models for the dome of Milan Cathedral. Leonardo also began to produce scientific drawings, especially of the human body. He studied anatomy by dissecting human corpses and the bodies of animals. Leonardo’s drawings did not only clarify the appearance of bones, tendons, and other body parts but their function in addition. These drawings are considered to be the first accurate representations of human anatomy. Leonardo is also credited with the first use of the cross section, a popular technique for diagramming the human body. Leonardo wrote, “The painter who has acquired a knowledge of the nature of the sinews, muscles, and tendons will know exactly in the movement of any limb how many and which of the sinews are the cause of it, and which muscle by its swelling is the cause of this sinew’s contracting” (Wallace 131). In Dece...
