Raphael (The Library of Great Masters)

Raphael Sanzio was born in Urbino on 6th April 1483. Around the beginning of the 16th Century Raphael met Pietro Perugino, who influenced his painting perhaps more than any other painter: Peruginesque motifs can be identified in one of Raphael's earliest works, the altarpiece for the Church of Sant'Agostino in Citta di Castello, on which he collaborated with Evangelista da Pian di Meleto. From 1509 he was in Rome, where his first major undertaking was the decoration of the Stanza della Segnatura, commissioned by Pope Julius II. Raphael examines the works produced by this painter throughout his life, from his beginnings in Urbino, to his period in Florence, and his time in Rome. Raphael's work on the Stanza della Signatura is examined in some detail.