Tattoo Artists Recreate Leonardo da Vinci Masterpieces

Renaissance painter, scientist, inventor, and more, Leonardo is considered to be one of the greatest and most influential artists of all times

His artworks, characterized by extraordinarily lively yet harmonic compositions and subtle technique of shadowing had an enormous influence on the following generation of artists.

Recreating a Da Vinci piece of art in a tattoo is not easy at all, but with the ever increasing skill of modern tattoo artists, Da Vinci tattoos are on the rise.

Here's a list of ten of the most famous artworks by the master:

10. Virgin of the Rocks (1483-1486)

9. The skull sectioned (1489) one of Leonardo da Vinci's earliest anatomical studies.

8. Annunciation (1472-1475, oil and tempera on wood)

7. Leonardo da Vinci's Glider

Design for a flying machine with wings based closely upon the structure of a bat's wings.

6. Ornithopter (c. 1505)

While studying the flight of birds, Leonardo grasped that humans are too heavy and not strong enough to fly using wings simply attached to the arms. He therefore sketched an ornithopter, in which a human lies down on a plank and works two large, membranous wings using hand levers, foot pedals, and a system of pulleys.

5. Self-portrait in red chalk (around 1512)

Drawn around 1512 when Leonardo was 60 years old. Not everyone agrees that the drawing is a self-portrait of the artist. The red chalk on paper drawing of the old man with long hair and a beard is held by the Royal Library of Turin, Italy.

4. Lady with an Ermine (1490)

One of the four female portraits Leonardo da Vinci painted in his whole life, next to La Belle Ferronière, Ginevra de’ Benci and Mona Lisa. The model of the painting has been identified as Cecilia Gallerani. The drawing is displayed in the Czartoryski Museum in Kraków, Poland.

3. Vitruvian Man (1490)

The Vitruvian Man was sketched around 1490, and it is based on the ideal correlations of human proportions. The masterpiece is held by the Gallerie dell’Academia in Venice, Italy (not permanently displayed).

2. The Last Supper (1495 - 1497)

The subject of the Last Supper is Christ's final meal, when he says to his apostles “One of you will betray me,” and the apostles react, each according to his own personality. The painting can be seen in the monastery of Santa Maria delle Grazie in Milan, Italy.

1. Mona Lisa (1503)

Probably the most famous painting of all times, the iconic Mona Lisa's uncatchable smile is a mystery. The original painting is hanged on one of the walls of the Louvre Museum in Paris, France

If you want to see more tattoos inspired by the work of one of the most talented individuals to have ever lived, click here.