In Florence, Italy, the famous Leonardo da Vinci began painting The Mona Lisa, one of the best-known paintings in the world, in 1503 and finally completed it in 1517 One of the main motifs of the painting's popularity lies with the artist himself. Leonardo is one of the most recognized artists of all time. The Mona Lisa was painted in honor of Lisa del Giocondo, the wife of the wealthy merchant Francesco del Giocondo from Tuscany. The painting was created to celebrate the completion of their home and the arrival of their second child. The Mona Lisa is one of the best-known paintings of the Renaissance era. This painting, as well as Leonardo da Vinci, inspired and influenced many Renaissance artists and writers. It also changed the way people viewed and made art. During the Renaissance art was usually just what they saw. They drew people as they were, without any real sense of freedom to be creative. The background of the Mona Lisa was different mainly because of its landscape. The Mona Lisa was one of the first paintings if not the first to have an imaginary background. This means that the background was so unique, because no other artist had set out to create a piece with an aerial view, creativity and freedom. It opened up new possibilities for other artists to step out of their comfort zone and not just achieve what was expected of them.Figueroa 2Leonardo da Vinci was born in Italy on April 15, 1452. He was the son of a successful lawyer, his father and mother were never married and he was the only child they had together. But his parents had other partners: "They continued to have children, although not together, and eventually provided for each other... middle of paper... always managed to be creative and experiment with his works of art art. Because Leonardo da Vinci took a risk, creating one of the first paintings with an imaginary background that opened new doors for artists. Thanks to his passion for studying the natural world, Leonardo achieved perfect harmony between nature and humanity. "The background can be a representation of the universe, with mountains, plains and rivers. Or maybe it's both reality and a dream world. One might assume that the landscape does not exist, that it is the young woman's dream world." And it is thought that she smiles because she is dreaming ("Cuzin" from Leonardo's masterful techniques). The Mona Lisa encouraged others to be free and create a more compositional art, instead of what art was expected to be, which was a copy of reality forever changed art and the way artists looked at art.