Art DB 3

Part 1

The word “symbol” simply refers to an object or any other thing that represents something else (Womack, 2005). Leonardo Da Vinci, an Italian who lived between 1452 and 1519, used numerous symbols in his work. He was a talented painter and sculptor (Cohen, 2008).

The following is one of the famous drawings that Da Vinci created around 1490:

Source: Umansky (2013).

The drawing is called Vitruvian Man and was commonly used by artists during the renaissance period as a symbol to indicate perfect human dimensions. In today’s culture, the drawing is used to represent creative literature, film, music or art. In short, the image conveys that a certain artistic work is perfect (Umansky, 2013).

Da Vinci’s paintings also featured the following chalice:

Source: Umansky (2013).

During the ancient times, a chalice was used to represent women. For instance, Da Vinci used it to represent Mary Magdalene in his painting titled The Last Supper that he created between 1495 and 1498. A chalice was used to mean that the presence of a woman or women in the midst of men was recognized. The chalice still has the same meaning in today’s culture (Umansky, 2013).

Part 2

The following is one of the most common symbols today:

Source: Venefica (2015)

The above image of heart is commonly used as a symbol of love. People use the symbol to express love to others (Venefica, 2015). An image of a lion is also common, and it is used as symbol of strength and courage. Thus, the image is usually used to express courage or strength (Venefica, 2015).

Source: Venefica (2015).

The key difference between the symbols in part 1 and part 2 is that those in part 1 are common in Greece while those in part 2 are used in almost all societies across the world. Further, the meanings of the symbols in part 1 are more abstract than the meanings of symbols in part 2.

References

Cohen, S. (2008). Animals as Disguised Symbols in Renaissance Art. Madrid: Brill

Umansky, N. (2013). 10 Famous Paintings with Hidden Codes. Retrieved from

http://www.oddee.com/item_98643.aspx

Venefica, A. (2015). Animal Totem, Meanings and Animal Symbolism. Retrieved from

Animal Totems

Womack, M. (2005). Symbols and Meaning: A Concise Introduction. California: AltaMira Press