Raphael’s hall

Raphael’s hall. Object d’arts – late 15-early 16^th century. “Procession with elephants” – Juliano Romano. Big cartoon – full-size drawing, that is used as a model for tapestry, fresco or mosaic. This is one of the 22 cartoons, devoted to ancient military leader Scipio Africanus, only two survived, the other one is in Louvre. Scipio was the commander of the roman army in Spain. He defeated Carthaginians both in Spain and in Africa (Second Punic war).

The H possesses a rear collection of the 16^th century Italian majolica. Displays cases – banqueting sets: basins for cooling wine, plates with portraits of brides and grooms – were presented as a wedding-present, some pieces are decorated with pictures by famous painters, including Raphael (one plate – “Abduction of Helene”; “Neither hope, no fear” – the slogan of rich family De’Esta).

Raphael

Raffaello Sanzio da Urbino (April 6 or March 28, 1483 – April 6, 1520), better known simply as Raphael, was an Italian painter and architect of the High Renaissance. His work is admired for its clarity of form and ease of composition and for its visual achievement of the ideal of human grandeur. /ɡrændʒə(r)/ Together with Michelangelo and Leonardo da Vinci, he forms the traditional trinity of great masters of that period.

Raphael was enormously productive, running an unusually large workshop, and despite his death at 37, a large body of his work remains. Many of his works are found in the Apostolic Palace of The Vatican, where the frescoed Raphael Rooms were the central, and the largest, work of his career.

the opinion ...was generally held in the middle of the sixteenth century that Raphael was the ideal balanced painter, universal in his talent, satisfying all the absolute standards, and obeying all the rules which were supposed to govern the arts, whereas Michelangelo was the eccentric genius, more brilliant than any other artists in his particular field, the drawing of the male nude, but unbalanced and lacking in certain qualities, such as grace and restraint, essential to the great artist.

Raphael 1483-1520. He is from Umbria (the pupil of Perudjino). Two painting – one of early period, one of Florentine period. We haven’t got paintings from his roman period – we can only show Loggias. He summarized all the achievements of Italian artists of his time, he created an image of an ideal beauty. The artists took subjects from the Bible.

Madonna Conistabile (около 1502). Raphael entered the history of Italian art as the "genius of harmony". The ideals of the High Renaissance were best embodied in his works. The Conestabile Madonna is one of the early works by the master.

Early period, native province – painted a landscape of it, the frame was also designed by the artist. The painting portrays the Madonna holding the Child while reading a book. In 1881, when the picture was moved to canvas, it was discovered that in the original version the Madonna contemplated a pomegranate (symbol of the Passion) instead of the book.

Peace and contemplation - and hint of sadness - are reflected in the face of the young woman, and are perfectly in tune with the mood engendered by the transparent spring landscape. The flowing lines of the figures, echoing the round format of the painting, and the gentle painting style intensify the tender and delicate image of the young woman and the beauty of the world around.

This painting was brought from count Conistabile (1870) from the Conestabile family of Perugia, from whom it was acquired by Alexander II of Russia in 1871. Alexander II presented it to his wife Maria who liked the painting dearly so it was hanging in her bedchamber, she donated it to the museum. It was painted on the wooden board, but when it came to SPb, the art-historians discovered a lot of cracks on the surface – they decided to transfer it from the wooden board into canvas. Layer by layer of wood was taken off – and when only the layer of paint remained, it was implied to the canvas.

The painting is still in its original frame, decorated with grotesque ornament and evidently made to a design by Raphael himself. Before the painting was transferred from panel to canvas, the frame and the painting formed one united whole.

During Soviet time the authorities made an attempt to sell the painting and though the price they wanted for it was quite low they never managed to find anyone who would like to buy it. The painting was thought either to be a fake or not a work of Raphael.

The Holy Family (Madonna with the Beardless Joseph)

Tempera on canvas (transferred from panel) 72.5 x 56.5 cm

Second painting – “Madonna and child with beardless Joseph”. 1504 Raphael moved to Florence – this painting belongs to his Florentine period.

This is an early work created by Raphael in Florence. Here the artist frees the figures from the level of everyday life and raises them to a plane of harmony and perfection. Soft and flowing lines typical of Raphael, the colouring and the poses of the figures, all create a scene of harmony, simplicity and splendour. Departing from tradition, the artist depicted St Joseph without a beard, hence the painting's second title.

Was bought in 1772, were implied to the canvas in 30^th of 19^th century

Lorentso Lorentseto “Dead boy on the dolphin”. This sculpture was created after a drowning by Raphael. The subject was borrowed from a classical legend – they were friends and often played at the sea together. Once the boy was wounded and the wound proved fatal, and the dolphin broad a boy on the shore and died together with the friend.

It is unusual, that the dolphin have scales.

Loggias.

The copy of Raphael’s Loggias in Vatican. Loggia is an open-air gallery. In Vatican in was built to a design by the arc Bromante in the beginning of the 16^th century and decorated with frescos by R and his pupils. C-II saw the engravings of R’s frescos and she commissioned several artists to copy his frescos (so-called “R’s Bible”). The artist Unterberger was the head of this group, the gallery – Kvarengi, the same dimensions, as in Vatican. 13 portions, on the walls – scenes from the Bible.

We have mirrors (with golden powder), one is broken. The only difference from the original loggias – Court of arms with the Russian double-headed eagle in the middle of the Loggias.

Galleries are decorated with canvases, painted to imitate fresco-paintings. R’s was free in the technique of “grotesque-painting”.

Michelangelo (Small Italian Study) – great painter, sculpture, poet of the renaissance. Sculpture – “The crouching boy” 1520^th. It was made to decorate Medici-chapel in Florence. Face of teenager, the back of powerful man. But the artist excluded this figure from the last version of the chapel – in a roughly-finished state, not polished, the sculpture illustrate his skills and manner of carving.

Art-historians speak about not-finished sculptures (“non-finito”). He is a founder of baroque-style.

In the second part of the 19^th century it was bought by the Hermitage (?).

Frescos by Raphael pupils – Venice, goddess of love. This frescos used to decorate villa Palarina (his own), later, when this villa became the property of the monastic order, they were sold and acquired by the H. Several subjects – Venice and Cupid, he scratched her breast with an arrow and she felt in love with Adonis, a human hunter.