As any person who wishes to contribute to the development of society, it is important to learn about history in general. For designers, learning about such monumental events as the invention of moveable type and the Renaissance era is integral to innovation. In any field, you must learn from what others did in the past so as to avoid reinventing the wheel, but to allow yourself to build on the concepts and ideas with a more modern perspective. Many components of technology today can be traced back to ancient times and we must know what exactly it is we’re adding to in order to make something new. Moveable type can be considered a baseline for all future typographic endeavors; it’s our roots as designers. Moreover, from the Renaissance, we can learn that creativity and an understanding of the physical world are key components of good design. Da Vinci would not have been as successful as he was with his art and inventions had he not been thoughtful about the mechanics of his work. Understanding where we came from is essential to moving forward and innovating ourselves.
I like your thinking about the importance of understanding to innovation. I would encourage you to take that further – as moveable type influences modern typographic design, what could inspire innovation in another interaction design-related element?
I also believe Da Vinci was very successful at what he did when designing and creating his inventions while acquiring and mixing his unique artistic and engineering skills together.