One of the finest artists of the Renaissance, Raffaello Sanzio da Urbino (1483-1520) designed magnificent frescoes for the Vatican private residence and its Loggia.
250 years later, to record Raphael’s brilliance, Pope Clement XIII ordered the intricate designs of Raphael's early 16th century frescoes to be engraved onto copperplates for Le Logge di Rafaele nel Vaticano (The Loggia by Raphael at the Vatican) published circa 1772-1777. An ambitious project, each of the very large engravings was superbly hand-coloured with gouache and watercolour.In the loggia, at the base of each ceiling vault is a beautiful arch decorated with garlands of fruit and flowers, and friezes with architectural design embellished with gods, graces, and mythical beasts. The central vertical folds on the large copperplate engravings of the ceiling arches indicate the size of this grand publication. The images are approximately 33cm x 57cm
Each pilaster fresco was engraved on two large copperplates. Each joined pair measures 105cm x 44cm, and was superbly hand-coloured to accentuate Raphael’s imaginative grotesque motifs of beribboned flowers and fruit, gods and graces of mythology, and fine architectural decoration. Where detail had deteriorated and was illegible, design elements from Raphael’s Vatican tapestries were used.
The elegance and classical beauty of Raphael’s design – in particular his grotesques - greatly influenced neo-classical style. The grand engravings of Raphael’s pilasters were considered to be so important that ten years later they were engraved in pairs half the size of the first publication, so that each pair measured 37 x 50cm. Again in 1813, these exquisitely detailed copperplate engravings were published in Paris by Pierre-Philippe Choffard (1730-1809).
Once again they were brilliantly hand-coloured in gouache and watercolour. (Two pairs - each from sets of 6 - are shown here, framed in beautiful hand-made gold-leaf frames, or hand-made gilded antique veneered frames.)
These stunning 18th century engravings recording the brilliance of Raphael's fresco designs for the Vatican are of a style and quality more often seen in the Museums of Europe. It is rare that they are available to grace the walls and be enjoyed in your own home.
These magnificent original 18th century engravings of Raphael's beautiful frescoes at the Vatican are currently on display at the Brisbane Antique Emporium at Clayfield (open every day). Some of them can also be seen in the Antique Prints: Classical/Design section of our website at http://www.antiqueprintclub.com/c-22-classicaldesign.aspx.
For further information or assistance please contact Derek or Kathryn Nicholls at sales@antiqueprintclub.com
The elegance and classical beauty of Raphael’s design – in particular his grotesques - greatly influenced neo-classical style. The grand engravings of Raphael’s pilasters were considered to be so important that ten years later they were engraved in pairs half the size of the first publication, so that each pair measured 37 x 50cm. Again in 1813, these exquisitely detailed copperplate engravings were published in Paris by Pierre-Philippe Choffard (1730-1809). 
These magnificent original 18th century engravings of Raphael's beautiful frescoes at the Vatican are currently on display at the Brisbane Antique Emporium at Clayfield (open every day). Some of them can also be seen in the Antique Prints: Classical/Design section of our website at http://www.antiqueprintclub.com/c-22-classicaldesign.aspx. For further information or assistance please contact Derek or Kathryn Nicholls at sales@antiqueprintclub.com
No comments:
Post a Comment