Leonardo da Vinci began painting the Mona Lisa in 1503.He was working on a special painting for a church at the time,but the church painting was not going well.An Italian businessman asked da Vinci to paint a picture of his second wife.This is the woman who can be seen in the Mona Lisa.     All in all,the Mona Lisa is a very good example of da Vinci`s works.Da Vinci used darkness and light in a clever way in the painting.     Da Vinci loved science and math.Right away a person can see that there is a lot of geometry in the Mona Lisa.The face of the Mona Lisa is made of many circles and round shapes like balls.Even her smile can be seen as a small part of a large circle.     The woman in the painting is sitting on a balcony ,and mountains can be seen behind her.Da Vinci  loved to study rocks and mountains,so these can be seen over and over in his other paintings.     The woman is sitting with her knees to the side.Her head is turned to look out of the painting.Her hands are held together in front of her.This way of sitting is now used by many artists when they are painting a picture of a man or a woman today.