The Renaissance has left us, more than any other period, with the most ideals incorporated in our lives. More than 500 years ago, great masters sought to out-perform the Greek Civilization, with its perfection in Art, Literature, and Music. Making that which is functional most perfect in its perception. The High Renaissance Period did not only copy but perfected the rediscovered work, elevating these discoveries to a higher plane, somewhere between earth and heaven.
Rafael was considered one of the most illustrious artists of the High Renaissance. Born in Urbino, Italy to a well to do family he quickly became the best apprentice to Perugino a master painter of the Quattrocento, fourteen hundreds. At that time, one learned with a master in a Bottega (shop) by imitating the style of work of the master, often participating in the painting itself and often completing the work of art commissioned by patrons. Within a decade, Rafael came to be known as the painter in the shop and even beyond his master, coming into his own unique style. .
He moved to Florence where, in the shadow of Leonardo de Vinci and Michelangelo his fame increased and his style, quite different from the other two masters was recognized for its unique genre and was commissioned by wealthy patrons. Still to sustain himself financially he often accepted commissions of mass produced Madonnas and marriage chests. Among his more sought after work of arts, the frescoes at the Vatican became best known.
Rafael was mostly known for a particular style he developed. It was a method where he incorporated the movement of his figures and the ample space of his compositions into ideal structures. He integrated and harmonized from the picture plane to the point of infinity. For example, in his painting of the "Marriage of the Virgin" which he signed in 1504, he uses the "rules" of the Quattrocento, well learned while with Perugino.
