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Raphael, sublime poetry

  • Alternate title

    Sublime poetry

Abstract

"The definitive survey of a celebrated master of Italian Renaissance art, featuring groundbreaking new research by a leading expert on Raphael's life and work Raphael (Raffaello di Giovanni Santi; 1483-1520) is unquestionably one of the most important artists of the Italian Renaissance. Despite living only thirty-seven years, he quickly emerged as a peer to both Leonardo and his avowed rival, Michelangelo. Raphael: Sublime Poetry spans his short but spectacular life and career, from his early training amid the culture of his native Urbino, through his prolific years in Florence, to his final, magnificent decade at the papal court in Rome. Though Raphael is best known for his meteoric success as a painter, draftsman, designer, and architect, this catalogue highlights his equal accomplishments as a humanist, antiquarian, and poet. Carmen C. Bambach offers fresh perspectives on the beloved artist, reconsidering his well-known masterpieces and uncovering the importance of rarely seen treasures. The publication also sheds new light on Raphael's relationship with women by identifying previously unrecognized models for his portraits and discussing the agency of his female patrons. Bringing together more than two hundred of Raphael's drawings, paintings, tapestries, and decorative arts from public and private collections around the world, this catalogue is rich in archival discoveries and firsthand technical analyses. Lavishly illustrated and meticulously researched, it is the definitive text on the artist's life, art, and enduring legacy" -- Publisher's description

Contents

Sponsor's Statement -- Director's Foreword / Max Hollein -- Acknowledgments -- Lenders to the Exhibition -- Contributors to the Catalogue -- Note to the Reader -- Raphael: Sublime Poetry / Carmen C. Bambach -- The Timeless Artist -- Raphael of Urbino -- From Student to Master -- Between Perugia, Urbino, and Florence -- Glory and Majesty at the Papal Court -- Portraits and the Artifice of Self-Presentation -- The Entrepreneurial Artist and His Collaborators -- The Poetic Eloquence of the Painter-Architect -- Epilogue -- The Prince of Painters -- The Contribution of Science and Architecture -- Designing the Chigi Chapels / Angelamaria Aceto -- Architectural Projects in Rome / Guido Beltramini -- Raphael's Underdrawings: New Insights / Rachel Billinge and Marika Spring -- Collaboration and Delegation in the Workshop / Angela Cerasuolo -- Stationers and Tracing Paper / Cecilia Frosinini -- Two Madonnas: Recent Findings / Ana González Mozo -- Cartoon Assembly and Construction / Maurizio Michelozzi -- Catalogue of the Exhibition / Carmen C. Bambach, with the assistance of Tiffany Racco -- Notes -- Bibliography -- Index -- Photography Credits.

Contributors

Publisher

  • Publication

    New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, [2026]

Is about

  • Person

  • Subject

Type

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Classification

  • ISBN

    • 1588398110
    • 9781588398116

Annotations / title notes

  • Notes

    • "This catalogue is published in conjunction with the exhibition Raphael: Sublime Poetry, on view at The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, from March 29 to June 28, 2026."--Colophon
    • "Dive into the artistic process of one of history's most beloved and influential artists. A true titan of the Italian Renaissance, Raffaello di Giovanni Santi (1483-1520)--better known as Raphael--matched ambition with lyricism to create works with both intellectual heft and emotional depth, a necessary skill in the complex political landscape of Renaissance courts. In his short life of only 37 years, he achieved such profound success as a painter, designer, and architect that he was regarded as the pinnacle of artistic perfection for centuries after his death. Raphael: Sublime Poetry is the first comprehensive exhibition on Raphael in the United States, bringing together more than 200 of the artist's greatest masterpieces and rarely seen treasures to illuminate the brilliance of Raphael's extraordinary creativity. The son of a painter and poet, Raphael engaged with the foremost writers and thinkers of his age in Rome, displaying a poetic sensibility that captivated his peers and generations that followed. Follow the full breadth of his life and career, from his origins in Urbino to his rise in Florence, where he began to emerge as a peer of Leonardo da Vinci and Michelangelo, to his final, prolific decade at the papal court in Rome. To underscore the range of his genius, this presentation brings together important drawings, paintings, and tapestries from public and private collections across Europe and the United States, many of which have never been shown together. With particular attention to Raphael's portrayal of women--from his use of nude female models for the first time in Western art to his tender depictions of the Madonna and Child--and recent scientific discoveries made using state-of-the-art technology, this exhibition offers a rare opportunity to experience the genius of an artist who helped shape the course of art history." -- Metropolitan Museum of Art website

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