10am - 6:45pm daily
Leonardo da Vinci was one of history's greatest geniuses and a master of many disciplines. He was also a man in the right place and the right time, who had access to the resources through which he could expand his learning. Importantly, da Vinci had a highly innovative interdisciplinary perspective, and insisted on deriving knowledge through direct observation and experience. This marks him out as a strikingly modern figure.
In this gallery of the exhibition, visitors can use their own experience and creativity to build new shapes and structures, experiment with flight, and enjoy the display of innovations which show why da Vinci’s pioneering ideas and designs continue to resonate in today’s world.
Leonardo da Vinci was one of history's greatest geniuses and a master of many disciplines. He was also a man in the right place and the right time, who had access to the resources through which he could expand his learning. Importantly, da Vinci had a highly innovative interdisciplinary perspective, and insisted on deriving knowledge through direct observation and experience. This marks him out as a strikingly modern figure.
In this gallery of the exhibition, visitors can use their own experience and creativity to build new shapes and structures, experiment with flight, and enjoy the display of innovations which show why da Vinci’s pioneering ideas and designs continue to resonate in today’s world.
- HANDS-ON ACTIVITIES
Platonic Solids
Da Vinci was fascinated by the relationship between two-dimensional and three-dimensional shapes. When he collaborated with Luca Pacioli in 1497 on the treatise, The Divine Proportion, he illustrated the five platonic solids– complex three-dimensional shapes. To represent these three-dimensional shapes in a two-dimensional drawing, known as a ‘net’, da Vinci needed to understand how two-dimensional shapes are transformed into three-dimensional shapes using perspective and proportions.
Visitors can discover the relationship between 2D and 3D shapes by creating their own 3D platonic shape by folding the 2D ‘net’.
Visitors can discover the relationship between 2D and 3D shapes by creating their own 3D platonic shape by folding the 2D ‘net’.
Exploring Parachutes
Da Vinci designed a parachute-shaped like a cone, which was to be constructed using a wooden frame and linen cloth. It was intended as an escape device to allow people to jump from considerable heights. Though he never tested his parachute design, it was based on rigorous studies of physics. Modern-day constructions and tests of his design reveal that if da Vinci had built his parachute, it would have worked.
In this activity, visitors can use their own creativity and understanding of air resistance to create their own parachute.
In this activity, visitors can use their own creativity and understanding of air resistance to create their own parachute.
Build like da Vinci
Da Vinci was not only a masterful artist but also a brilliant inventor, engineer and architect. His observation of existing techniques combined with his passion to improve peoples’ everyday lives, led to his innovative inventions and designs for buildings, civic and military devices, and even musical instruments.
Using the construction materials provided, visitors can build their own machines, buildings, and bridges.
Using the construction materials provided, visitors can build their own machines, buildings, and bridges.