Leonardo da Vinci und die Geburt der Naturphilosophie in der Renaissance. Eine Reise durch Bilder

Abstract

The “sfumato” is a new notion, both from an artistic and metaphysical viewpoint. Thanks to this concept, Leonardo brings the reflection on the nature of the cosmos to a level of surprising currency, thus overcoming the dichotomy between the human and the natural world (animals, plants, atmosphere, water, and rock formations). At the same time, the distinction between nature and supernatural reality is also questioned: nature is pervaded by the spirit, i.e., the incorporeal force that animates the entire universe, while the sacred turns out to be rooted in an original dimension that escapes any temporal computation. And it is to this union that such magnificent works such as The Virgin of the Rocks, the Mona Lisa, and Saint Anne with the Virgin and Child are inspired. They are pictorial treatises on the philosophy of nature that are inspired to the divine principle, which pervades creation. At the heart of this deep osmosis between natural exploration and the human-divine world is creativity of the artist, in whose works the world is spiritualized and perfected.