Giovanna Mignosa

La mostra “Raffaello e Urbino” e’ stata inaugurata presso la Sala del Trono al Palazzo Ducale di Urbino il 4 aprile -- e sara’ aperta al pubblico fino al 12 luglio. Per ulteriori informazioni, visitate www.raphaeleurbino.it.

The exhibit “Raffaello and Urbino” was inaugurated on April 4 in the Sala del Trono at the Palazzo Ducale of Urbino (the National Gallery of the Marche) and it will be on display until July 12.  The exhibit presents 20 paintings and 19 original drawings compared with the paintings of his father (Giovanni Santi) and other painters that were close to him in Urbino during his early developmental years as an artist. It also includes other works covering the 1470s through the 1480s that reflect his connection to his city. A final area is dedicated to the tie between the artist and the most important production of the dukedom of Urbino, the maiolica.

Raphael (1483 – 1520), born in Urbino as Raffaello Santi or Raffaello Sanzio, is known for his new concept of space and for being well liked by the papal court.  He had a large workshop that he inherited at his father’s death -- his father was a court painter for the Duke. 

The artist is well known for his Madonnas and for the clarity of his forms and ease of composition.  During his career, he travelled often to Florence and Rome where he was called by Pope Julius II to execute frescoes in the walls of the Stanza della Segnatura -- it is here that the two frescoes of the Disputa del Sacramento and of the School of Athens mark the highest point in Raphael’s artistic career.

After the death of Pope Julius II, he was made chief architect of Saint Peter’s Basilica in 1514.  The artist, along with Michelangelo and Leonardo da Vinci, is considered one of the great masters of the High Renaissance.

The curator for the exhibit is Lorenza Mochi Onori, Superintendent for Artistic, Historical and Ethno-anthropological Heritage of the Marche and includes a prestigious technical committee that includes the most prominent international experts in the field.

The exhibit is promoted by the Ministry of Cultural Heritage, the Regional Directorate for Cultural Heritage and the Landscape of the Marche, the Superintendence for Artistic, Historical and Ethno-anthropological Heritage of the Marche, the Regional Administration of the Marche, the Provincial Administration of Pesaro and Urbino, the Urbino town council and the Cassa di Risparmio di Pesaro Foundation.

For more information on “Raffaello and Urbino,” visit www.Raphaeleurbino.it.