Raphael

Raphael was an Italian painter and architect and one of the great masters of the High Renaissance. Born in Urbino in 1483, he became famous for the grace, harmony, and balance of his work, qualities that made him a model for artists for centuries. His many tender images of the Madonna and child are among the most beloved religious paintings ever made.

Working in Rome for the popes, he covered the walls of the Vatican with grand scenes, including the famous School of Athens, which gathers the great thinkers of antiquity in a majestic hall. He ran a busy workshop and was hugely admired before his early death in 1520 at just thirty seven. Raphael's serene, perfectly balanced art has defined ideals of beauty in Western painting.