Paper Example: Raphael - His Life and Works

Officially known as Raffaello Sanzio da Urbino, Raphael was an Italian architect and painter whose name is synonymous with the High Renaissance movement. His artworks stood out for their ease of composition and clarity of form. Another feature that made the works of Raphael worth noting is the reality that they exhibited visual attainment of the Neoplatonic perfection of human magnificence (Vasari, Burke & Paul Getty Museum, 2018). Since most of his works are associated with the High Renaissance, humanism is a common feature in all of them. Raphael's works were inspired by household names such as Leonardo da Vinci and Michelangelo. Together with these two artists, they form the traditional trinity of the great masters of Renaissance art. Although he died at the prime age of 37, leaving behind a lot of uncompleted work, Raphael was highly productive, operating a remarkably large workshop. This paper takes a deep dive into the life and works of one of the greatest names in the history of Western art, Raffaello Sanzio da Urbino.

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Early Life and Education

There is no consensus on the exact date of Raphael's birth, with some scholars placing it on March 28 and others arguing that it must have been the first day of April of 1483 (Vasari, Burke & Paul Getty Museum, 2018). However, all historians agree on his place of birth, Urbino, Italy. Born to a painter father, Giovanni Santi, Raphael would learn Renaissance humanism and other artistic techniques from the time he was a young boy. When his father passed away in 1494, Raphael's knowledge and skill would come in exceptionally handy. With his mother's assistance, the eleven-year-old Raphael dived right into taking care and control of his father's art workshop, where he would learn more and more as he handled the work. His excellence in art awed everybody because he exceeded the expectations of many people.

At a teenager, Raphael realized that it was time to move on from his father's workshop because he needed more space. In around 1500, the teenage Raphael moved to Perugia, where he would serve as an art assistant to then renowned artist Perugino (Allen, 2020). Under Perugino, young Raphael learned and practiced those styles and techniques associated with the High renaissance, including religious themes, classical elements, intricate landscapes, realistic human figures, complexity and stability of light, and compositional order and so on. For the few years that young Raphael worked with Perugino, he created some of his early paintings that would emerge as highly famous. Some of these artworks include The Three Graces, Mond Crucifixion, The Knight’s Dream, and Marriage of the Virgin, the altarpiece.

Growing up in Florence

In the quest to move on even further, to gain further practical experience, to interact with new people in the world of art, to see new places, and to finish his artistic growth, Raphael moved to Florence where he would live on and off for the four years following 1504. During this time, the artist painted his well-famed series of Madonnas, including the 1507 La Belle Jardinère (McCurdy, 1917). Raphael cultivated his application of movement and the connection between his artistically presented figures through artworks like Canigiani Holy Family. In the four years, the artist made three notable altarpieces, some portraits, and his famous portrayal of St. Catherine.

Commissions from the Pope

In 1508, Raphael's star shone the brightest when he was commissioned by Pope Julius II to decorate and paint a room in the Vatican (Sanzio & Hoopla digital, 2011). At the time, such an appointment was considered the highest honor achievable by an artist. Upon the papal commissioning, Raphael moved to Rome, where he started working on the Stanza della Segnatura, which, according to many art historians, served as the library for Pope Julius II. It is the room that houses some of the most remarkable artworks by Raphael, including such masterpieces as the Parnassus, the School of Athens, and the Disputation of the Holy Sacrament.

In the masterpiece, The School of Athens, the artist depicted some of the greatest philosophical thinkers of the classical age. In the Parnassus, Raphael paid tribute to the poets of The Middle Ages and the Classical Period (Goffen, 2002). Finally, his masterpiece, the Disputation of the Holy Sacrament, gave a creative elucidation and confirmation of the actual presence of Christ in the Eucharist. The room was eventually completed in 1512 and included the artist's ceiling frescoes, poetry, theology, justice, and philosophy.

The work done by Raphael was remarkable and so impressive that the pope commissioned the artist to work in another room in the Vatican. In the new room, known as Stanza d'Eliodoro, Raphael focused on the intervention of God on the church’s behalf. In the room, he created such treasured artworks as the Mass of Bolsena, the Expulsion of Heliodorus from the Temple, the Liberation of St Peter, and the Meeting between Leo the Great and Attila (Kinder, 2008). After the death of Pope Julius II in 1513, Raphael was retained by Pope Leo X, who has succeeded Julius. In 1514, Leo X hired Raphael to paint an additional room named Stanza dell' Incendio. Raphael, who was highly experienced by then, painted the room in a design that told the tale of a fire in Rome extinguished inexplicably. By this time, he was a highly practiced artist that he had a team of workshop assistants painting the room as he concentrated on completing his Madonnas series.

Most Notable Artworks

A broad multiplicity of his artworks are still in the Vatican Palace, where the mural Raphael Rooms were the largest and most critical works of his career in art. The School of Athens is Raphael's best-known artwork, and it is located in the Stanza della Segnatura. While he was highly influential in his generation, the situation outside Rome was a little different because, outside, he was mostly known for and associated with his collaborative printmaking.

The so-called Raphael Cartoons, currently in the Albert and Victoria Museum, is a long series of 10 cartoons featuring scenes from the lives of Saint Peter and Saint Paul. They were intended to decorate the walls of the Sistine Chapel and are some of the most important works done by Raphael while he was in Rome (Kinder, 2008). Under the commissioning on Pope Leo X, the cartoons were completed and sent to Bruxelles for sewing at Pier van Aelst’s workshop. Scholars firmly believe that Raphael saw the finished works because the series was completed in 1520 before his death, at the peak of the High Renaissance.

Death and Legacy

While the exact cause of Raphael's death is not known with certainty, many historians agree that it had something to do with his exhaustion from multiple unceasing romantic affairs. Raphael never married but enjoyed a near-permanent connection with one Margherita Luti. Some historians argue that Raphael died after a night of heavy sex with Margherita, which resulted in a high fever, exhaustion and other symptoms. Due to his unwillingness to state the real cause of the fever and exhaustion, the doctors misdiagnosed his condition and gave him the wrong cures, which would later lead to his untimely demise. He died on the Good Friday of 1520, April 6. Some scholars believe that he died on his birthday, suggesting that his date of birth is not March 28 as believed by many historians, but April 6. As at the time of his death, the artist was strong and composed enough to receive his last rites, to put his affairs n good order, and to confess his sins. He also had the chance to dictate his will, in which he was sure to allocate adequate funds to the welfare of his mistress Margherita. In his will, Raphael gave the contents of his studio to Penni and Giulio Romano. His body was buried at the Pantheon as per his request.

After Raphael died, his rival Michelangelo had greater and more widespread influence until the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries when the more harmonious and serene qualities of Raphael were considered the greatest models once again. The career of Raphael falls squarely into three distinct phases and styles. Giorgio Vasari primarily discussed the three phases and styles. The first phase of Raphael's life and career refers to his early years in Umbria. The second phase lasted about four years (1504 to 1508), during which Raphael concerned himself with absorbing Florence's artistic traditions. This phase was followed by 12 years characterized by remarkable triumph in Rome (McCurdy, 1917). It is in this last and hectic phase that he worked for Pope Julius II and Pope Leo X and their closest friends and associates.

References

Allen, D. C. (2020). Mysteriously meant: the rediscovery of pagan symbolism and allegorical interpretation in the Renaissance. JHU Press.

Goffen, R. (2002). Renaissance Rivals: Michelangelo, Leonardo, Raphael, Titian. Yale University Press.

Kinder, J. L. (2008). Raphaello Sanzio: Life and Work of a Renaissance Genius. Senior Honors Papers, 64.

McCurdy, E. (1917). Raphael Santi. Hodder and Stoughton.

Sanzio, R., & Hoopla digital. (2011). Complete works of Raphael. United States: Delphi Publishing Limited.

Vasari, G., Burke, J., & J. Paul Getty Museum. (2018). The life of Raphael. Los Angeles: J. Paul Getty Museum