It is the most beautiful collection of paintings I have ever seen, and it is very difficult to take out one from another. But … the most beautiful painting in the world, and I have no doubts, is the Madonna della Seggiola of Raphael. I knew it through copies, but to be there right in front of it was quite different. A painter was copying it and his copy was nice and correct, but missed that ‘don’t-know-what-mystery which makes the painting a miracle’
Nathaniel Hawthorne, when he visited the Pitti Palacein June 1858 with his wife
Raphael came to Florence in 1504. He was 21 years old. What originally brought him to Florence was the desire to see the preparatory drawings (cartoons) of the battle scenes that the two great artists, Leonardo da Vinci and Michelangelo, were preparing to paint in the Palazzo Vecchio.
He stayed for 4 years, and this period marked a fundamental turning point for him. His style began to develop, and he showed a superb ability to recreate beauty through his own vision.
His paintings called “The Florentine Madonnas” are often described as possessing Divine Harmony (and isn’t that what Nathaniel Hawthorne is saying in his decription at the top?)
On this tour we will visit the Galleria Palatina in the Pitti Palace which holds 9 paintings of Raphael, making it the biggest collection of Raphael paintings in Florence.
If you plan a visit to Rome after Florence, you will see how his style evolved after coming to Rome in 1508, and particularly after he had seen Michelangelo’s paintings in the Sistine Chapel. In fact, Raphael’s figures became grandiose in a very Michelangelesque way.
Duomo Santa Maria del Fiore