Sanzio, Rafael (1483-1520)

Also known as Raphael of Urbino or simply Raphael. He has always been recognised as one of the greatest artists of the High Renaissance in Italy.

He worked for two of the most important patrons of the time, Popes Julius II and Leo X. He was acclaimed as a painter, architect, designer and scholar of antiquities.

His great master was, apart from his father, Pietro Perugino. Raphael executed his first independent paintings for Urbino and when he settled in Florence, Leonardo and Michelangelo were in full swing and he studied them both. Julius II summoned him to Rome to participate in the redecoration of the Vatican rooms, and he soon took over the direction of the entire project.

Despite his untimely death at the age of 37, he left an extensive oeuvre and a profound mark on the history of art.