Raphael
Raphael Sanzio in his own time was called the 'Prince of Painters.' Raphael was born in Urbino, Italy in 1483. He was the son of Giovanni Santi and Magia di Battista Ciarla. His father was an accomplished painter, although he was not as special as Rapael was destined to be. Raphael worked in many cities all over Italy, including Florence and Perugia. He is best known for his Madonnas and for his large figure compositions, many of which are now to be found in the Vatican museum in Rome.
Raphael was lucky in his teachers. He lived with his parents until he was twelve, when both his parents died. But by then Raphael had already learned enough from his father to be an expert painter. Soon after his parents' death he traveled to Perugia where he became an apprentice in the studio of the great painter Perugino. In 1500 Raphael left Perugino's studio for Florence where he could gain inspiration from the famous painters there, including Michaelangelo and Leonardo de Vinci.
As soon as he got to Florence he started to paint the famous painting, The Madonna of the Golden Finch. The Madonna of the Golden Finch became one of the best loved works of Raphael. It is a painting of Mary, Jesus and St. George as a baby. This was one of the many subjects he painted- religious. His other subjects were myths, Portraits, and ancient Greece. Later in his career Raphael would paint St. George as a grown man in St. George and the Dragon. What is so beautiful about The Madonna of the Golden Finch is the bold and deep colors and the even, shadowless lighting. If you look closely at the painting you will notice that there is a pyramid formed by Mary at the...