Building a Digital Altar for Leonardo da Vinci in Canva: A step-by-step guide

n this blog we will go over all over the steps to a digital altar for Leonardo da Vinci by creating a Canva website and using other free tools and public-domain material.

Before You Begin

You’ll need:

• 🖌️ A free Canva account
• 📍 A free Google account (for Maps, Forms, and Sheets)
• ⏳ About 30–45 minutes of calm creative time

When ready, open Canva → Create → Website → Blank → name it Leonardo da Vinci Altar.
Add 10 pages, one for each element below.

Portrait & Title

1. Upload Leonardo’s Self-Portrait
2. Add a large text heading: “Leonardo da Vinci”.
3. Position both on the page; keep a parchment-colored background.

Quote on Shadow

1. Create a quote block (Elements → “quote block”)
2. Paste: “The beginnings and ends of shadow lie between the light and darkness and may be infinitely diminished and infinitely increased. Shadow is the means by which bodies display their form.”
3. Add this reference beneath the quote →
   Project Gutenberg Notebooks (§276).

Masterpieces Gallery

1. Upload:
   • Mona Lisa
   • Vitruvian Man

Thoughts on Art & Life

1. Add a thought-balloon icon (Elements → “thought bubble”).
2. Inside it, write “Thoughts on Art and Life.”
3. Highlight the text and add link → LibriVox recording.
4. Upload The Last Supper → image.
5. Below the image → Apps → Embed → paste this MP3 link: https://ia601505.us.archive.org/6/items/thoughts_on_art_and_life_1702_librivox/thoughts_05_davinci_64kb.mp3 Canva will insert an inline audio player.

Life Journey Map

1. Go to Google My Maps.
2. Create a map titled “Leonardo’s Life Journey.”
3. Add pins for Vinci, Florence, Milan, Amboise.
4. Share → “Anyone with the link” → three-dot menu → Embed on my site → copy the URL inside src="".
   (e.g. https://www.google.com/maps/d/u/0/edit?mid=1Fwuy_XQ3bfIqoizgAFwgI3a4-RxUJDs&usp=sharing)
5. In Canva → Apps → Embed → paste link → Add to design.
6. Position it on the page

The Codex Arundel

1. Set background image to Vitruvian Man writing texture (duplicate from page 3).
2. Go to Apps → Embed → paste: https://artsandculture.google.com/story/the-codex-arundel-mapping-leonardo-s-working-life-the-british-library/5AUBtgGQK_TgJQ
3. Resize

Music and Invention

1. Add a film-roll icon (Elements → “film rolol”).
2. Go to Apps → Embed → paste: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0cwkvYZuMuo (Performance of Renaissance music featuring the lira da braccio.)
3. Add this text:
   “Reconstruction of the lira da braccio in the shape of a horse’s skull, which Leonardo built for himself (though made of wood and not of silver).”

Machines of Leonardo Presentation

1. Duplicate the Vitruvian-writing background from page 6.
2. Apps → Embed → paste this Archive.org link: https://archive.org/details/leonardosmachine0000laur (Book viewer “Leonardo’s Machines: Da Vinci’s Inventions Revealed.”)
3. Position it on the page

Guestbook Form

1. Create a Google Form titled “Leonardo Guest Book?”
2. Publish and copy its link (e.g.:
   Guestbook Form).
3. In Canva → Apps → Embed → paste link → Add to design.
4. Position it on the page

Live Responses Sheet

1. Open the Form’s linked Sheet →
   Public Responses Sheet
2. In Canva → Apps → Embed → paste that link.
3. Position it on the page

Finishing Touches

• Choose colors
• Choose fonts
• Publish → Website → Free domain → Scrolling layout.

Conclusion

The finished Canva site becomes a living altar: part art exhibit, part reading room, part soundscape, and part community book.
With a few embeds and free public-domain materials, you can transform a flat page into an experience that lets visitors see, hear, and even contribute to Leonardo da Vinci’s ongoing legacy.