Da Vinci’s Code: Learning Leonardo’s Way

Late fifteenth-century artist Leonardo da Vinci’s creative genius stemmed from six work habits that can be seen more than half a millennium on to be useful to instill in twenty-first century learners who would become our era’s next innovators. The practices can be summarized as: Curiosity; imagination; observation; association; attentiveness; and self-indulgence in the fantastic. During this presentation, Leonardo da Vinci’s habits will be listed, and examples of his ideas and their execution will be cited for discussion during the presentation. The notions that were born in da Vinci’s mind will be demonstrated to be based on habits at once timeless and innovative. Participants will be asked to comment upon and to apply this 6-part da Vinci “code” to their own fields of interest and their own work. They will be invited to see how the da Vinci 6-part process invites cross-curricular thinking and innovation. This presentation will engage participants in brainstorming and interactive discussion throughout. Participants will take away a renewed respect for Leonardo da Vinci and a set of timeless mind tools that may be deployed anywhere.