Raphael: A Passionate Life

I bought this book to find out who Raphael was as a man, but instead it told more about his art. There are scant details about him, and what there is starts off well, especially with the descriptions of his relationship with his father, but the more he moved on into the world of art, the less he talked about who Raphael was as a man.If you want to know more about Raphael as a man, (which I do) it might be better to read Visari's book, even though it is rife with discrepancies, at least there are letters from Raphael and actual accounts from people who knew him. I am hoping to find out more this way, as it seems most book on artists tend to be reviews of their works and not biographies.That being said, there was a lot to glean about how artists created paints, especially frescoes and stanzas where the piece was really big, and it did talk about how those who worked with him liked him and how he forged relationships. This was especially key after the Pope fired all the artists when he hired Raphael to do the Sistine Chapel. Raphael rehired them because he knew he would need their help, due to the fact that he had never done anything like that before. So, there is a sense of who he was, but in truth, I wanted more.

This book is actually two distinct writings: the text of the original author on which are superimposed the translator's own words. I do not know how the Italian version satisfies the Italian reader but the English version would have benefited from an English editor's oversight. Awkward sentence constructions, mismatched verb tenses, wrong prepositions, poor word selection give many a pause to the reader.The book is informative about Raphael's celebrated talent and his phenomenal artistic rise tended by the great wealth of his benefactors. However, given the title of the book, I expected to learn more about the man himself. Forcellino gives us abundant details about Raphael's paintings, his artistic evolution and his ever-widening circle of prestigious commissions. Still, I was hoping for a more intimate portrait of the artist's character.

It's quite excellent. The translation is spot on and the writing is lively and entertaining. Raphael has always been in the background of most biographies of 15th century artists. The masters in Firenze gave him little recognition. Forcellino truly brings the young talented man alive to the reader. The color plates are excellent quality.

Raphael does not come to life in this History Book. I could have done without (seemingly endless) pages on the Medici, the Borgias, dozens of aunts, uncles, cousins. What were Raphael's visions, trials, disappointments, thoughts on life and fate? To me, none of this was addressed. I really don't see where this book supplants the Vasari biography of Raphael.

This is a very good text to those who are studying Art. Comparison with many masters and Raphael were very interesting.Raphael came down to this world for such a short time and he left us so many chef-d'oeuvres.

It you want to know about this great Renaissance man, this book covers his life and the times he lived in.Complete and thoroughly covers his life and greatest works. Loved reading it and hated when it ended.

Beautiful book. Very well written and well documented. I enjoyed reading the book and learned from it.

15th Century Italy was an interesting place at an interesting time.  Raphael: A Passionate Life  by Antonio Forcellino, is more than a biography of the great painter Raphael. It is also a good history of that time that includes information about Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo, and the Popes Julius II and Leo X.This period in European history is quite important. The Italian Renaissance had started and its city states were at war - both with each other and with other countries, France was invading Italy, the Ottomans were invading Europe, and Luther started the Protestant Reformation. The author incorporates these major historical events into his biography of Raphael, as well as much detailed information about other great (and not so great) artists of the period, important military and political figures, and the Popes who financed much of Raphael's work. Given all of this detail, I thought it odd that the author does not discuss the great master Titian who was only 5 years younger than Raphael and lived a much longer life.The author also provides a detailed artistic appreciation for Raphael's paintings, many of which are illustrated in the color plates included in this book. Unfortunately the plates are collected into one section in the middle of the book making it tedious to turn back and forth between the text and the illustrations. Nevertheless his writing works well to point out the major artistic achievements and innovations that Raphael achieved in his short lifetime.This is a very readable history first published in Italian in 2006, skillfully translated from the Italian by Lucinda Byatt for this 2012 English version.

This book answered many questions about Raphael's life and as its written by an Italian, had a sense of ownership I found absorbing. Lots of info about paints used, how and why, and the players of the time. I still wanted to get inside Raphael's head and didn't quite get there, but maybe my enthusiasm and interest in this painter is, if not obsessional, then unrealistic. Learned a lot, and Italy certainly came alive for me.

Excellent

After the disappointment of Antonio Forcellino's previous book on  Michelangelo , which was continually derailed by a rocky, pot-holed translation, I was hoping this book on Raphael might be a return to form. Thankfully this book has the same translator, Lucinda Byatt, as Forcellino's earlier (very enjoyable)  The Lost Michelangelos  and so we're back on solid ground - well, except for Forcellino's flights of fancy while telling his story. He's not a writer who sticks only to forensic detail, although as a renowned restorer he certainly has that degree of insight at his disposal, and frequently allows his love for the works to sweep the story along on romantic imaginings. These might be an acquired taste for some readers but, when sympathetically translated, they seemed authentically Italian and somehow entirely appropriate to me. We'll never know the exact details of all the events and motivations behind these paintings so having Forcellino fill in some blanks with his own well-informed supposition is part of the pleasure of the book. Forcellino is one of those experts able to communicate his enthusiasm for a subject and make it so infectious that even if the artist he's discussing isn't that familiar to you it's still compelling.My only complaint is that there aren't enough illustrations in the book, you want to see every painting mentioned in the text while reading but they're not all here. If you have an iPad or iPhone you might like to know there's a free app available that contains hundreds more illustrations of Raphael drawing and paintings - just search for 'Raphael' in the App Store. It makes a nice pictorial accompaniment to an already highly enjoyable book. MichelangeloThe Lost Michelangelos

What a simply wonderful book. My interest in art history and in Raphael in particular does colour my assessment of this book which, as the first reviewer has already pointed out it may not appeal to the general reader. Antonio Forcellino's ability to evoke the period is outstanding. This may stray into faction but it certainly adds layers of interest to this account of Raphael's life. You can almost feel and taste the social and cultural context. This is a book that brings the period to life. Another, and obviously crucial, aspect of the author's skills is the quality of the research that has gone into the narrative. It's also pleasing to see Vasari's work being challenged in an informed, scholarly manner. The quality of the translation by Lucinda Byatt is excellent. Highly recommended to anyone interested in art history.

I enjoyed this book and found it both interesting and readable. This is a bonus because I have found, after many years in art education, that books on art history are frequently neither. However, the book falls between two stools, is it an academic or popular biography? Even though there is an excellent section of notes, from time to time it strays into supposition and faction, telling us what Raphael saw and thought when there are no references cited. It is not always totally clear what has been documented and what is the author's surmise. This probably does not detract from the book's worth as a means of learning about Raphael, but it does make one query its credentials as an academic biography, but, at the same time, its tone is more serious than most popular biographies.I found his analysis of Raphael's painting and his tracing of the various influences that affected the way his painting developed fascinating, especially when his comments were supported by illustrations.Although he does deal with some of the background history, I would have liked more detail about the political scene in Italy in the late fifteenth century to make sense of what happened next, but, since the author is Italian, perhaps he assumed that an Italian audience would have this knowledge. Equally frustrating in some ways was the discussion about the differences in character and behaviour between Raphael and his near contemporaries and rivals, Leonardo and Michelangelo. I wanted to know more. I feel that an opportunity was lost.All in all, this a good introduction to Raphael and his work but it could have been so much more.