Leonardo invented the chiaroscuro and sfumato techniques, both of which are used widely. Michelangelo, however, adopted other’s techniques without innovation. Modern exposure of Leonardo propels him over Michelangelo because of Michelangelo’s relative isolation from the modern public domain, while Leonardo has a large portion of fiction dedicated to him. Leonardo is a more influential artist than Michelangelo.

When comparing Leonardo and Michelangelo, Leonardo’s outside experience in various fields give him more influence. They both engineered masterpieces such as The Sistine Chapeland the Mona Lisa, respectively. Leonardo, however, used his knowledge of anatomy in his art. Michelangelo, however, used typical techniques of the period. “[Michelangelo] received a firm grounding in the traditional techniques and practices of painting and sculpture” (Barker 232). Leonardo, however, was able to use new methods that people could use themselves. Leonardo was able to establish the guidelines for the proportions of the human body in sketches such as Vitruvian Man.

“One is entitled to ask why … Leonardo holds a position of such remarkable pre-eminence in the history of Western art. The answer … [is] his prodigious and unparalleled output as a thinker, scientist, inventor and designer… first and foremost, the form and function of the human body.” (Ashwin 111-12)

Before Vitruvian Man paintings of people often looked ridiculous. “In … art of the Middle Ages … There was no need to depict the reality of the material world [in art]” (Strauss 213). Humans were often portrayed as being too slender and having awkward frames. No one believed that complete realism was needed. For this same reason, however, art was not taken seriously because paintings seemed out of touch and inhuman. Leonardo was able to give accurate and proportional guidelines for artists to use with Vitruvian Man. He defined what the human form should look like in paintings. He also depicted how body parts should appear in relation to each other. Leonardo’s guidelines were adopted by many Renaissance artists, which helped to fuel the Renaissance in art and society. Leonardo’s guidelines brought the art world out of an era of bland and static paintings. People could then identify with uniquely human paintings.

Patron-artist relationships, where wealthy merchants paid artists to create art, began to blossom like never before. The art world was able to take off and Leonardo’s work was able to guide generations of artists after him. Leonardo’s studies in anatomy allowed him to establish his guidelines, while Michelangelo merely produced art and discussed little about his techniques or influences.

When comparing Michelangelo and Leonardo the next step is to look at the techniques they invented and used. Michelangelo did little to permanently change the practice of sculpture making or painting. Michelangelo invented no new painting or sculpting techniques. In fact, Michelangelo was often out done by Leonardo. “Michelangelo was not the greatest of masters with pen and ink … Leonardo da Vinci was far his superior in this medium.” (Zisper 30). Leonardo, in contrast, invented new painting techniques. The chiaroscuro and the sfumato are his most well known.

The chiaroscuro is a method of contrasting light and dark in paintings. Leonardo often used it to give paintings more depth, while Michelangelo chose to avoid such complexity.

“Leonardo introduces a new feature… Such skillful use of light and dark paints … became known as chiaroscuro, a style of shading that dominates tone (brightness) more than color. Leonardo … artificially expands the range of luminance, creating a greater sense of depth. He achieves tonal unity by investing every colored object … but he does not vary the hue like Michelangelo does” (Livingstone 131).

Graphic novelists often use the chiaroscuro today. “Chiaroscuro is also used in cinematography … to create distinct areas of light and darkness in films. Frank Miller’s Sin City is an example of this style in both the graphic novel and the subsequent film.” (Ivey 42). Many artists use the chiaroscuro in their graphic novels to give them a more dark and mature setting. Sin City, for example, was illustrated using shades of black and white with little color to create a mature atmosphere. What many do not realize is that Leonardo is the one behind the chiaroscuro and responsible for so many graphic novels and movies. Michelangelo, however, learned traditional fresco painting techniques without inventing new methods. “Michelangelo was first influenced by frescoes…of which he did copies as a basis for developing his skills.” (Livingstone 143).

While popular in the period, fresco paintings waned in popularity and eventually became increasingly rare. Not many recognize the masterpieces Michelangelo created with frescoes on the same scale as they do Leonardo because of the increasing rarity of fresco paintings. Leonardo’s influence pervades through graphic novels and movies that use the chiaroscuro, while the frescoes that Michelangelo specialized in are rarely produced anymore.

Leonardo also invented the sfumato technique, or atmospheric haze. Sfumato is what makes the most famous painting of all time, Mona Lisa, so mysterious. The haze around the smirking woman in Mona Lisa gives it a sense of mysterious maturity that no artists have come close to. “Paint layers, particularly in the mouth area [of the Mona Lisa], are used to study Leonardo’s famous sfumato technique” (National Research Council Canada website).

There is argument over whether the smile is causing the shadows, or if Leonardo’s shadows cause her to smile, revealing the complexity of the sfumato. Many have been captivated by this simple, yet stifling, question. The Mona Lisa’s smile shows what Leonardo’s sfumato can do to mystify observers. Leonardo’s sfumato influences people today more than Michelangelo, evident in tribute musical bands such as “Sfumato,” and a motion picture titled Mona Lisa Smile. Michelangelo, in contrast, is remembered by having his prized sculpture, The Pieta, smashed with a sledge hammer.

Between Leonardo and Michelangelo, the raw controversy and exposure surrounding Da Vinci gives him more modern exposure. While Michelangelo completed many great works, he never shared his secrets or published his techniques. Leonardo, however, published his accumulated knowledge of art in Treatise on Painting. He gave advice for how to paint faces, how to paint in different lighting situations, when to use certain pastels and oils, and even where to find inspiration. For example, Leonardo explains that people should not “underestimate this idea of mine, which calls …[for] an effort to pause sometimes to look into these stains on walls, the ashes from the fire, the clouds, the mud, or other similar places”(Da Vinci).

Treatise on Painting is often used in many art classes and exposes Leonardo’s influence to thousands of art students across the world. Leonardo believed he should share his feelings about art, which subsequently spread his influence. Michelangelo, in contrast, preferred to keep his feelings to himself and to leave his art as his only legacy. While this may have suited Michelangelo, it did little to spread his influence. Leonardo, in comparison, spread his influence through Treatise on Painting.

The controversies around Da Vinci allow his influence to spread today. If you were to show a picture of the Pieta it would not be as familiar as the Mona Lisa because of the popularity of The Da Vinci Code and other literature. The Da Vinci Code is a fictional novel by Dan Brown which claims that Leonardo belonged to a secret order with the intent of protecting the fictional bloodline of Jesus from sects of the Catholic Church. Brown often cited Leonardo’s paintings throughout the book as carrying secret messages and detailed some of Leonardo’s techniques. The success of the book spawned responsive literature and essentially a new genre devoted to Da Vinci.

Millions of copies of The Da Vinci Code have been published in dozens of languages, allowing Da Vinci’s works to be exposed to people across the globe in text and illustrated versions of the novel. While the events in the book are ultimately fictional, the Da Vinci Code has prompted many readers to reexamine the life of Leonardo in order to determine their own conclusions. The modern fascination with Leonardo is exacerbated in a modern society that has allowed people to rediscover his art and legacy through the internet, books, and magazines.

Although Michelangelo has his share of famous works, there is little literature, and even less controversy about his works. The extent of controversy surrounding Michelangelo is limited to whether or not it is acceptable to show the sculpture David’s groin. That topic, however, has not spawned much literature. Leonardo, however, lives on in a modern world with even more controversy and exposure of his works than ever before.

While no winner will ever be officially declared, the rivalry between Leonardo and Michelangelo remains as fierce as ever. Leonardo used his knowledge of anatomy and the human forum to establish the guidelines that characterize western art, while Michelangelo used traditional painting techniques. Leonardo also invented the Chiaroscuro and Sfumato, and even out did Michelangelo at certain techniques. Leonardo additionally has more modern exposure, evident in the flurry of literature that has surrounded the Da Vinci Code. To evaluate who is the more influential artist, you must look at these three categories. Leonardo surpasses Michelangelo by far in all three and reigns king in the realm of influence.