What inspired Da Vinci's work, the Annunciation?

Question

The Annunciation was his first surviving work. Per Da Vinci the movement of air and water are similar in behavior, why was it difficult for him to understand Newtons law?

Answer 1

Da Vinci's The Annunciation is inspired by Luke 1:26-38, where the angel Gabriel appears to Mary and tells her that she will conceive a son (Jesus).

I went and looked at one of my art books on Renaissance Art, and looked at a photograph of the painting in question. The only water I see is in the little fountain at Mary's side. The water seems to be flowing with a breeze that blows toward Gabriel. Most Renaissance art depicts water in a highly stylized manner, meaning that it doesn't flow the way water flows in nature. They didn't have a clear understanding of fluid dynamics back then, which is why it doesn't look real.

As for Da Vinci not understanding Newton's laws, the fact is that Da Vinci predated Newton by about 250 years. He couldn't understand Newton because Newton and his contributions to science did not exist yet.

Answer 2

Renaissance artists primary patrons were the church and the painters were comissioned to paint allegorical scenes from the bible. The Annunciation is one of these scenes. Leonardo's version is wonderful but not an inspiration as far as the subject matter is concerned. There are many annunciation paintings as there are pietas, crucifictions, assensions etc. Leonardo was a young man when he painted this and would have taken inspiration from Verrochio, his master. Leonardo wouldn't have known about Newton's laws as Newton wasn't born for about another two centuries. Have a look at his drawing of Santa Maria della Neve if you want a good example of how he treats nature and the elements. He also, in later life wrote at length about the properties and behaviour of wind and water.