150 Timeless Quotes from Leonardo da Vinci: Wisdom from the Renaissance Master

Patrick WrightJuly 5, 2025

150 Timeless Quotes from Leonardo da Vinci: Wisdom from the Renaissance Master

An oil painting of Leonardo da Vinci

Leonardo da Vinci (1452-1519) stands as one of history's most extraordinary minds—a true Renaissance polymath whose genius spanned art, science, engineering, anatomy, and philosophy. Best known for masterpieces like the Mona Lisa and The Last Supper, da Vinci was far more than just a painter. He was an inventor, scientist, mathematician, and philosopher whose notebooks reveal a mind constantly questioning, observing, and seeking to understand the fundamental nature of existence.

His wisdom transcends centuries, offering insights that remain remarkably relevant in our modern world. From his observations on human nature to his revolutionary understanding of art and science, Leonardo's words continue to inspire creators, thinkers, and dreamers across the globe. This collection of 150 quotes reveals the depth of his philosophical thinking and his profound understanding of life, creativity, and the human condition.

Table of Contents

  1. Art and Creativity
  2. Knowledge and Learning
  3. Life and Death
  4. Human Nature and Character
  5. Science and Nature
  6. Wisdom and Philosophy
  7. Success and Perseverance
  8. Time and Experience

Art and Creativity

Leonardo's revolutionary approach to art transformed how we understand creativity itself. His quotes on art reveal not just technical mastery, but a deep philosophical understanding of the creative process.

"Painting is poetry that is seen rather than felt, and poetry is painting that is felt rather than seen." - Leonardo da Vinci

"A painter should begin every canvas with a wash of black, because all things in nature are dark except where exposed by the light." - Leonardo da Vinci

"The painter has the Universe in his mind and hands." - Leonardo da Vinci

"What is fair in men, passes away, but not so in art." - Leonardo da Vinci

"If the painter wishes to see beauties that charm him, it lies in his power to create them, and if he wishes to see monstrosities that are frightful, ridiculous, or truly pitiable, he is lord and God thereof." - Leonardo da Vinci

"The painter will produce pictures of little merit if he takes the works of others as his standard." - Leonardo da Vinci

"Painting is concerned with all the 10 attributes of sight; which are: Darkness and Light, Solidity and Color, Form and Position, Distance and Propinquity, Motion and Rest." - Leonardo da Vinci

"A beautiful body perishes, but a work of art dies not." - Leonardo da Vinci

"To become an artist you have to be curious." - Leonardo da Vinci

"Art is never finished, only abandoned." - Leonardo da Vinci

"The artist sees what others only catch a glimpse of." - Leonardo da Vinci

"Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication." - Leonardo da Vinci

"Details make perfection, and perfection is not a detail." - Leonardo da Vinci

"The eye, which is called the window of the soul, is the principal means by which understanding may most fully appreciate the infinite works of nature." - Leonardo da Vinci

"Painting is mute poetry, and poetry is blind painting." - Leonardo da Vinci

"Art is the queen of all sciences communicating knowledge to all the generations of the world." - Leonardo da Vinci

"Where the spirit does not work with the hand, there is no art." - Leonardo da Vinci

"The painter who draws merely by practice and by eye, without any reason, is like a mirror which copies every thing placed in front of it without being conscious of their existence." - Leonardo da Vinci

"He who despises painting loves neither philosophy nor nature." - Leonardo da Vinci

Knowledge and Learning

Da Vinci's insatiable curiosity and dedication to learning made him the ultimate Renaissance man. His thoughts on knowledge reveal a mind that never stopped questioning.

"The noblest pleasure is the joy of understanding." - Leonardo da Vinci

"All our knowledge has its origin in our perceptions." - Leonardo da Vinci

"Wisdom is the daughter of experience." - Leonardo da Vinci

"The knowledge of all things is possible." - Leonardo da Vinci

"Study without desire spoils the memory, and it retains nothing that it takes in." - Leonardo da Vinci

"All sciences are vain and full of errors that are not born of Experience, the mother of all Knowledge." - Leonardo da Vinci

"The acquisition of knowledge is always of use to the intellect, because it may thus drive out useless things and retain the good. For nothing can be loved or hated unless it is first known." - Leonardo da Vinci

"Learning never exhausts the mind." - Leonardo da Vinci

"I have been impressed with the urgency of doing. Knowing is not enough; we must apply. Being willing is not enough; we must do." - Leonardo da Vinci

"The greatest deception men suffer is from their own opinions." - Leonardo da Vinci

"There are three classes of people: those who see, those who see when they are shown, those who do not see." - Leonardo da Vinci

"I awoke only to find that the rest of the world was still asleep." - Leonardo da Vinci

"Intellectual passion drives out sensuality." - Leonardo da Vinci

"Just as iron rusts from disuse, even so does inaction spoil the intellect." - Leonardo da Vinci

"While I thought that I was learning how to live, I have been learning how to die." - Leonardo da Vinci

"Experience is a truer guide than the words of others." - Leonardo da Vinci

"Common sense is that which judges the things given to it by other senses." - Leonardo da Vinci

"Truth at last cannot be hidden. Dissimulation is of no avail." - Leonardo da Vinci

"Science is the captain, and practice the soldiers." - Leonardo da Vinci

Life and Death

Leonardo's contemplations on mortality and the meaning of life reveal a philosopher grappling with humanity's deepest questions.

"As a well spent day brings happy sleep, so life well used brings happy death." - Leonardo da Vinci

"Our life is made by the death of others." - Leonardo da Vinci

"Just as a well-filled day brings blessed sleep, so a well-employed life brings a blessed death." - Leonardo da Vinci

"Life is pretty simple: You do some stuff. Most fails. Some works. You do more of what works." - Leonardo da Vinci

"The days are long enough for those who use them." - Leonardo da Vinci

"Life without love, is no life at all." - Leonardo da Vinci

"He who does not value life does not deserve it." - Leonardo da Vinci

"Every now and then go away, have a little relaxation, for when you come back to your work your judgment will be surer." - Leonardo da Vinci

"In rivers, the water that you touch is the last of what has passed and the first of that which comes; so with present time." - Leonardo da Vinci

"Time stays long enough for anyone who will use it." - Leonardo da Vinci

"The memory of benefits is a frail defense against ingratitude." - Leonardo da Vinci

"Whoever in discussion adduces authority uses not intellect but rather memory." - Leonardo da Vinci

"Nothing can be loved or hated unless it is first understood." - Leonardo da Vinci

"The human foot is a masterpiece of engineering and a work of art." - Leonardo da Vinci

"Tears come from the heart and not from the brain." - Leonardo da Vinci

"The smallest feline is a masterpiece." - Leonardo da Vinci

"Nature is the source of all true knowledge." - Leonardo da Vinci

"The deeper the feeling, the greater the pain." - Leonardo da Vinci

"Every action needs to be prompted by a motive." - Leonardo da Vinci

Human Nature and Character

Da Vinci's keen observations of human behavior and character offer timeless insights into what makes us human.

"One can have no smaller or greater mastery than mastery of oneself." - Leonardo da Vinci

"He who thinks little errs much..." - Leonardo da Vinci

"I love those who can smile in trouble..." - Leonardo da Vinci

"Reprove your friend in secret and praise him in public." - Leonardo da Vinci

"The act of procreation and anything that has any relation to it is so disgusting that human beings would soon die out if there were no pretty faces and sensuous dispositions." - Leonardo da Vinci

"I have from an early age abjured the use of meat, and the time will come when men such as I will look upon the murder of animals as they now look upon the murder of men." - Leonardo da Vinci

"He who wishes to be rich within a day, will be hanged within a year." - Leonardo da Vinci

"Nothing should be so greatly feared as empty fame." - Leonardo da Vinci

"It is an acknowledged fact that we perceive errors in the work of others more readily than in our own." - Leonardo da Vinci

"No counsel is more sincere than that given on ships which are in danger." - Leonardo da Vinci

"Patience serves as a protection against wrongs as clothes do against cold." - Leonardo da Vinci

"The greatest geniuses sometimes accomplish more when they work less." - Leonardo da Vinci

"Envy wounds with false accusations, that is with detraction, a thing which scares virtue." - Leonardo da Vinci

"You can have no dominion greater or less than that over yourself." - Leonardo da Vinci

"He who possesses most must be most afraid of loss." - Leonardo da Vinci

"Necessity is the mistress and guide of nature." - Leonardo da Vinci

"Many are those who have a taste and love for drawing, but no talent." - Leonardo da Vinci

"Threats alone are the weapons of the threatened man." - Leonardo da Vinci

"Beyond a doubt truth bears the same relation to falsehood as light to darkness." - Leonardo da Vinci

Science and Nature

Leonardo's scientific observations demonstrate his revolutionary approach to understanding the natural world through direct observation and experimentation.

"Water is the driving force in nature." - Leonardo da Vinci

"Although nature commences with reason and ends in experience it is necessary for us to do the opposite, that is to commence with experience and from this to proceed to investigate the reason." - Leonardo da Vinci

"To such an extent does nature delight and abound in variety that among her trees there is not one plant to be found which is exactly like another; and not only among the plants, but among the boughs, the leaves and the fruits, you will not find one which is exactly similar to another." - Leonardo da Vinci

"Realize that everything connects to everything else." - Leonardo da Vinci

"I abhor the supreme folly of those who blame the disciples of nature in defiance of those masters who were themselves her pupils." - Leonardo da Vinci

"The eye which turns from a white object in the light of the sun and goes into a less fully lighted place will see everything as dark." - Leonardo da Vinci

"Human subtlety will never devise an invention more beautiful, more simple or more direct than does nature." - Leonardo da Vinci

"Nature never breaks her own laws." - Leonardo da Vinci

"In nature there is no effect without cause." - Leonardo da Vinci

"Weight, force and casual impulse, together with resistance, are the four external powers in which all the visible actions of mortals have their being and their end." - Leonardo da Vinci

"The sun has never seen a shadow." - Leonardo da Vinci

"Movement will cease before we are weary of being useful." - Leonardo da Vinci

"Fire destroys all sophistry, that is deceit; and maintains truth alone, that is gold." - Leonardo da Vinci

"The natural desire of good men is knowledge." - Leonardo da Vinci

"Medicine is the restoration of discordant elements; sickness is the discord of the elements infused into the living body." - Leonardo da Vinci

"The body of the earth is of the nature of a fish... because it draws water as its breath instead of air." - Leonardo da Vinci

"Why does the eye see a thing more clearly in dreams than the imagination when awake?" - Leonardo da Vinci

"The wind passing through the holes of a flute produces sweet sounds." - Leonardo da Vinci

"Every part is disposed to unite with the whole, that it may thereby escape from its own incompleteness." - Leonardo da Vinci

Wisdom and Philosophy

Da Vinci's philosophical musings reveal a thinker who understood the deeper patterns of existence and human experience.

"That which can be lost cannot be deemed riches. Virtue is our true wealth and the true reward of its possessor; it cannot be lost, it never deserts us until life leaves us. Hold property and external riches with fear; they often leave their possessor scorned and mocked at for having lost them." - Leonardo da Vinci

"Fine gold is recognized when it is tested." - Leonardo da Vinci

"Der Augenblick ist zeitlos." - Leonardo da Vinci

"Nessuna cosa si può amare nè odiare, seprima no si ha cognition di quella." - Leonardo da Vinci

"As every divided kingdom falls, so every mind divided between many studies confounds and saps itself." - Leonardo da Vinci

"Iron rusts from disuse; water loses its purity from stagnation... even so does inaction sap the vigor of the mind." - Leonardo da Vinci

"All things from eternity are of like forms and come round in a circle." - Leonardo da Vinci

"The truth of things is the chief nutriment of superior intellects." - Leonardo da Vinci

"Whoever despises the high wisdom of mathematics nourishes himself on delusion." - Leonardo da Vinci

"Small rooms or dwellings discipline the mind, large ones weaken it." - Leonardo da Vinci

"Savage is he who saves himself." - Leonardo da Vinci

"Not to anticipate is already to moan." - Leonardo da Vinci

"He who is not opposed by anyone will find no value in his words." - Leonardo da Vinci

"Experience does not err; only your judgments err by expecting from her what is not in her power." - Leonardo da Vinci

"Inequality is the cause of all local movements." - Leonardo da Vinci

"The supreme misfortune is when theory outstrips performance." - Leonardo da Vinci

"Wisdom is the daughter of experience." - Leonardo da Vinci

"The poet ranks far below the painter in the representation of visible things, and far below the musician in that of invisible things." - Leonardo da Vinci

"Every obstacle is destroyed through rigor." - Leonardo da Vinci

Success and Perseverance

Leonardo's thoughts on achievement and persistence reveal the mindset that enabled him to excel in so many fields.

"Obstacles cannot crush me. Every obstacle yields to stern resolve. He who is fixed to a star does not change his mind." - Leonardo da Vinci

"It had long since come to my attention that people of accomplishment rarely sat back and let things happen to them. They went out and happened to things." - Leonardo da Vinci

"Make your work to be in keeping with your purpose." - Leonardo da Vinci

"God sells us all things at the price of labor." - Leonardo da Vinci

"Men of lofty genius when they are doing the least work are most active." - Leonardo da Vinci

"Tristo è quel discepolo che non avanza il suo maestro." - Leonardo da Vinci

"I have offended God and mankind because my work didn't reach the quality it should have." - Leonardo da Vinci

"It is easier to resist at the beginning than at the end." - Leonardo da Vinci

"Just as courage imperils life, fear protects it." - Leonardo da Vinci

"The desire to know is natural to good men." - Leonardo da Vinci

"Good judgment comes from experience, and experience comes from bad judgment." - Leonardo da Vinci

"Obstacles do not bend me." - Leonardo da Vinci

"Fix your course to a star and you can navigate through any storm." - Leonardo da Vinci

"Every now and then go away, have a little relaxation." - Leonardo da Vinci

"Vitality shows in not only the ability to persist but the ability to start over." - Leonardo da Vinci

"A diamond is just a piece of coal that stuck to its job." - Leonardo da Vinci

"The length of a man's outspread arms is equal to his height." - Leonardo da Vinci

"Blinding ignorance does mislead us. O! Wretched mortals, open your eyes!" - Leonardo da Vinci

"Nothing strengthens authority so much as silence." - Leonardo da Vinci

Time and Experience

Leonardo understood that time and experience were humanity's greatest teachers, shaping wisdom through lived moments.

"We do not lack devices for measuring these miserable days of ours, in which it should be our pleasure that they be not frittered away without leaving behind any memory of ourselves in the mind of men." - Leonardo da Vinci

"Once you have tasted flight, you will forever walk the earth with your eyes turned skyward, for there you have been, and there you will always long to return." - Leonardo da Vinci

"He who loves practice without theory is like the sailor who boards ship without a rudder and compass and never knows where he may cast." - Leonardo da Vinci

"If you are alone you belong entirely to yourself. If you are accompanied by even one companion you belong only half to yourself or even less in proportion to the thoughtlessness of his conduct and if you have more than one companion you will fall more deeply into the same plight." - Leonardo da Vinci

"Time abides long enough for those who make use of it." - Leonardo da Vinci

"Experience never errs; it is only your judgments that err." - Leonardo da Vinci

"Perspective is to painting what the bridle is to the horse, the rudder to a ship." - Leonardo da Vinci

"Marriage is like putting your hand into a bag of snakes in the hope of pulling out an eel." - Leonardo da Vinci

"He who does not punish evil commands it to be done." - Leonardo da Vinci

"Where there is shouting, there is no true knowledge." - Leonardo da Vinci

"The function of muscle is to pull and not to push, except in the case of the genitals and the tongue." - Leonardo da Vinci

"Anyone who conducts an argument by appealing to authority is not using his intelligence; he is just using his memory." - Leonardo da Vinci

"There are four powers: memory and intellect, desire and covetousness." - Leonardo da Vinci

"For once you have tasted flight you will walk the earth with your eyes turned skywards." - Leonardo da Vinci

"Poor is the pupil who does not surpass his master." - Leonardo da Vinci

"Oysters open completely when the moon is full." - Leonardo da Vinci

"The divisions of perspective are three: the first respects the diminution in the size of bodies at different distances; the second treats of the diminution in color of these bodies; the third, of the diminution in the distinctness of the forms and outlines of these bodies at various distances." - Leonardo da Vinci

"Those who are in love with practice without knowledge are like the sailor who gets into a ship without rudder or compass." - Leonardo da Vinci

"I have wasted my hours." - Leonardo da Vinci

Conclusion

An oil painting of Leonardo da Vinci

Leonardo da Vinci's words continue to resonate across centuries, offering timeless wisdom that transcends the boundaries of art, science, and philosophy. His quotes reveal not just a brilliant mind, but a deeply human soul grappling with universal questions about creativity, knowledge, mortality, and meaning.

What makes Leonardo's wisdom particularly powerful is its foundation in direct observation and experience. He didn't merely theorize about life—he lived it fully, observing, questioning, and creating with an intensity that few have matched. His legacy reminds us that true genius lies not in specialized knowledge alone, but in the ability to see connections between all things, to maintain childlike curiosity throughout life, and to never stop questioning the world around us.

As we reflect on these 150 quotes, we're reminded that Leonardo da Vinci was more than just the painter of the Mona Lisa or the designer of flying machines. He was a philosopher of life itself, whose insights into human nature, creativity, and the pursuit of knowledge remain as relevant today as they were five centuries ago. His words challenge us to live more fully, observe more keenly, and never cease in our quest to understand the magnificent complexity of existence.

In a world that often demands specialization, Leonardo's example calls us to embrace the full spectrum of human experience—to be artists and scientists, dreamers and doers, observers and creators. His greatest lesson may be that the boundaries we perceive between disciplines are artificial, and that true understanding comes from seeing the unity that underlies all knowledge and experience.

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