Craving pleasure as well as knowledge, Raphael Sanzio was quick to realize that his talent would only be truly appreciated in the liberal, carefree and extravagantly sensual atmosphere of Rome during its golden age under Julius II and Leo X. Arriving in the city in 1508 at the age of twenty–five, he was entranced and seduced by life at the papal court and within a few months had emerged as the most brilliant star in its intellectual firmament. His art achieved a natural grace that was totally uninhibited and free from subjection. His death, at just thirty–seven, plunged the city into the kind of despair that follows the passing of an esteemed and much loved prince. In this major new biography Antonio Forcellino retraces the meteoric arc of Raphael’s career by re–examining contemporary documents and accounts and interpreting the artist’s works with the eye of an expert art restorer. Raphael’s paintings are vividly described and placed in their historical context. Forcellino analyses Raphael’s techniques for producing the large frescos for which he is so famous, examines his working practices and his organization of what was a new kind of artistic workshop, and shows how his female portraits expressed and conveyed a new attitude to women. This rich and nuanced account casts aside the misconceptions passed on by those critics who persistently tried to undermine Raphael’s mythical status, enabling one of the greatest artists of all time to re–emerge fully as both man and artist.
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′A brilliant and lyrical biography ... The masterful quality of Forcellino’s account lies not only in the beauty of its language, translated impeccably from Italian into English, but in the seamlessness and self–assurance with which he himself works across northern Italy, its paintings, its politics.′ The Spectator ′An excellent introduction to the workshop of the Renaissance artist, and to the careful and patient techniques employed in the making of timeless art works … Forcellino has done a very creditable service in his re–examination of the life of an artist who, more than any other, embodied the spirit of the Italian Renaissance.′ Irish Examiner ′Antonio Forcellino has now celebrated Raphael′s life and career by writing this ebullient book, elegantly translated by Lucinda Byatt ... [Forcellino] is ingenious and fastidious in describing Raphael′s works, and his book will give pleasure to those coming to them for the first time; it even highlights a few things connoisseurs may have missed.′ Literary Review ′A detailed biography that explains Raphael′s achievements during his short life, while also showing how his social skills and affable temperament helped him to advance his career … This informative book is also a rich treasury of information about the artistic developments and techniques of the period.′ Historical Novel Society ′Forcellino seeks to liberate his subject from later cultural and art–historical associations. Challenging post–Romantic conventions of the solitary genius, he presents Raphael as fully engaged with his society: a man whose eroticism and talent for friendship flowed naturally into his art ... Forcellino′s Raphael is a lover, not a fighter.′ The Art Newspaper ′Written in his usual lively style, Forcellino′s new book combines fast–moving narrative, a vivid portrait of Raphael the man, and a perceptive analysis of his art.′ Peter Burke, University of Cambridge
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Antonio Forcellino is an art historian and restorer.
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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
By J. Aitken
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Format:Hardcover|Amazon Vine™ Review
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As with his book on Michelangelo Buonarotti, Mr Forcellino combines an easily readable narrative with an expert view of the paintings. As an admirer of Raphael's work who has visited many of the places where his paintings are to be found, this volume gives an added impetus to return and see the works with fresh eyes. I was particularly impressed with his analysis of the two similar paintings by Raphael and his old teacher Pinturicchio, the first fine but static, Raphael's, exuberant and full of spatial awareness and individuality.
It is Mr Forcellino's strongest point, that he can write in detail about the work in a fascinating but eminently understandable way for the layman to comprehend.
This is an excellent book, which anyone with an interest in Raphael's career and work will enjoy.
It is Mr Forcellino's strongest point, that he can write in detail about the work in a fascinating but eminently understandable way for the layman to comprehend.
This is an excellent book, which anyone with an interest in Raphael's career and work will enjoy.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover|Amazon Vine™ Review
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I enjoyed this book and found it both interesting and readable. This is a bonus because I have found, after many years in art education, that books on art history are frequently neither. However, the book falls between two stools, is it an academic or popular biography? Even though there is an excellent section of notes, from time to time it strays into supposition and faction, telling us what Raphael saw and thought when there are no references cited. It is not always totally clear what has been documented and what is the author's surmise. This probably does not detract from the book's worth as a means of learning about Raphael, but it does make one query its credentials as an academic biography, but, at the same time, its tone is more serious than most popular biographies.
I found his analysis of Raphael's painting and his tracing of the various influences that affected the way his painting developed fascinating, especially when his comments were supported by illustrations.
Although he does deal with some of the background history, I would have liked more detail about the political scene in Italy in the late fifteenth century to make sense of what happened next, but, since the author is Italian, perhaps he assumed that an Italian audience would have this knowledge. Equally frustrating in some ways was the discussion about the differences in character and behaviour between Raphael and his near contemporaries and rivals, Leonardo and Michelangelo. I wanted to know more. I feel that an opportunity was lost.
All in all, this a good introduction to Raphael and his work but it could have been so much more.
I found his analysis of Raphael's painting and his tracing of the various influences that affected the way his painting developed fascinating, especially when his comments were supported by illustrations.
Although he does deal with some of the background history, I would have liked more detail about the political scene in Italy in the late fifteenth century to make sense of what happened next, but, since the author is Italian, perhaps he assumed that an Italian audience would have this knowledge. Equally frustrating in some ways was the discussion about the differences in character and behaviour between Raphael and his near contemporaries and rivals, Leonardo and Michelangelo. I wanted to know more. I feel that an opportunity was lost.
All in all, this a good introduction to Raphael and his work but it could have been so much more.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover|Amazon Vine™ Review
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What a simply wonderful book. My interest in art history and in Raphael in particular does colour my assessment of this book which, as the first reviewer has already pointed out it may not appeal to the general reader. Antonio Forcellino's ability to evoke the period is outstanding. This may stray into faction but it certainly adds layers of interest to this account of Raphael's life. You can almost feel and taste the social and cultural context. This is a book that brings the period to life. Another, and obviously crucial, aspect of the author's skills is the quality of the research that has gone into the narrative. It's also pleasing to see Vasari's work being challenged in an informed, scholarly manner. The quality of the translation by Lucinda Byatt is excellent. Highly recommended to anyone interested in art history.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars
Stunning insights delivered with warm Italian passion
You can tell this book was written by an Italian. The translation is flawless and the English perfect, but underlying the whole book is a real passion for the art and genius of... Read more
Published 3 months ago by Sue Bentley
5.0 out of 5 stars
Enjoyable and rewarding
This is an enlightening and enjoyable biography of Raphael. The author clearly loves the work of Raphael with all the natural grace and beauty, emphasising the sensual, pleasurable... Read more
Published 4 months ago by R. Tait
4.0 out of 5 stars
Raphael - A Passionate Life
This is the third book by Antonio Forcellini that I have read. The other two, one a biography of Michelangelo, the other tracing two of his lost paintings, were well written,... Read more
Published 5 months ago by MR P J FAIRWEATHER
2.0 out of 5 stars
Art History Circa 1950
The reputation of Raphael, the painter of the Stanze in the Vatican, a contributor to the design of St Peter's and the decorator of the Villa Farnesina has been more prone to the... Read more
Published 6 months ago by Eugene Onegin
5.0 out of 5 stars
A passionate writer...
After the disappointment of Antonio Forcellino's previous book on Michelangelo, which was continually derailed by a rocky, pot-holed translation, I was hoping this book on Raphael... Read more
Published 6 months ago by stylepuppy
4.0 out of 5 stars
too advanced for this amateur
I read the personal account of the journey of discovery contained in The Lost Michelangelos. Another reviewer dismissed it as being too Dan Brown, whom I have never read, but I... Read more
Published 9 months ago by G. Gavigan
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