New exhibit focuses on innovative designs of artist Leonardo da Vinci

CHICAGO -- When Leonardo da Vinci died nearly 500 years ago, his masterpieces -- the "Mona Lisa" and "The Last Supper" -- were among just dozens of paintings he left behind.

His sketches, however, numbered in the thousands.

In his drawings, he imagined designs for creations that would allow humans to walk on water and under the sea, soar high above the earth and even change how they fought wars.

It's those designs and contraptions that are the focus of "Leonardo da Vinci: Man, Inventor, Genius," a new exhibit at the Museum of Science and Industry opening today.

"He is the very spirit of inventive genius that this museum looks to inspire people with," said John Beckman, the museum's manager of temporary exhibits.

Drawing board

Many of Leonardo's creations did not get built in his lifetime -- they were either impractical or impossible based on the technological expertise of the day.

But 60 wooden models in the exhibit, built by a father and son team in Florence, manage to give viewers an inside look at the mind of the ultimate Renaissance man. Many will look very familiar to contemporary eyes.

His underwater breathing device, a predecessor to scuba gear, consisted of animal skins that would serve as a sack around the swimmer's head, connected to a tube to the surface.

The helicopter owes a debt to Leonardo's "air screw," while he also envisioned parachutes, hang gliders, paddle boats and bicycle chains that look remarkably similar to models used today.

He even envisioned a turtle shell-shaped tank which would shield eight soldiers inside while allowing them to fire at the enemy from cannons around the shell's ring.

The tank, like some of Leonardo's other sketches, was an improvement of an existing design.

Another example is his addition of a locking function to the catapult when previously a soldier had to hold a lever to keep the weapon from firing too early. Two life-sized models in the exhibit will let museum visitors fire foam balls across the huge main gallery, which is designed to look like a Renaissance-period workshop.

Many of Leonardo's designs had a military function because they were commissioned by patrons, Beckman said.

The exhibit features just one original Leonardo sketch -- a piece on loan from a private collection known as "The Theatre Sheet" on which he worked out possibilities for a staging of the play "Orpheus" in Milan.

A small section of the exhibit will be devoted to research and theories on the enduring myths and mysteries of Leonardo, such as why did he write backward, who exactly was "Mona Lisa," and -- most current -- exactly what in the blockbuster novel "The Da Vinci Code" related to its namesake is really accurate.

Beckman said he hopes the book, and the upcoming movie, inspire people to come see the exhibit and learn more about Leonardo.

As an illegitimate child born in 1452, he did not take the name of his father and was instead known as Leonardo "from Vinci" or "da Vinci." He never received a formal education, yet became one of history's most enduring figures "who has enough mystery in his background to inspire the stories in the book. You couldn't have picked a better character," Beckman said.

"We love 'The Da Vinci Code.' It's great that it's inspired so much interest in Leonardo," Beckman said. "There are tons of people out there going, 'Who was this guy? I thought he was just some painter."'

The final portion of the exhibit is devoted to "Modern-Day Leonardo's" -- scientists, engineers, architects, entrepreneurs and inventors who are leading to innovations in their fields of study. Some are working on inventions that appear as fantastical as Leonardo's "flying machines" surely did in his lifetime -- such as a physicist leading a project to develop an elevator that could transport humans and supplies to space via a thin cable.

"These are all people who are thinking way outside the box," Beckman said. "Leonardo invented the box, and these people are really pushing the edges of it in everything they do."

The exhibit will be on display through Sept. 4. It will not tour.

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On the Net:

Museum of Science and Industry: www.msichicago.org