School of Athens by Daniel Castillo

As many of my classmates have said, this painting is called the School of Athens (Scuola di Atene  in Italian)  and is one of the most important and representative masterpieces of the artist Raphael in the renaissance. It was painted between 1510 and 1511 and it was comissioned to decorate with frescoes the rooms now known as the Stanze di Raffaello, in the Apostolic Palace in the Vatican. In fact, it is really a frescoe and its dimensions are 500 cm × 770 cm (200 in × 300 in).

Description and History
It is one of four frescoes in the walls of Stanza that represent different branches of knowledge. It mainly represents the branches of art and philosophy shown in the different characters that adorn the frescoe. It is said that almos all greek philosophers are shown in the frescoe, but beause of the difficulty of recognizing them, Raphael had to use an Iconographic system to determine which character was each philosopher. The only figures in the painting that can be recognized without effort are Plato and Aristotle which are in the center of the frescoe. They can also be found almost all of the ancient scientists.

In 1508 the young native of Urbino had been recommended to Julius II by Donato Bramante, the pope's architect, and also a native of Urbino. So enthusiastic was the pope when he saw the fresco that Raphael received the commission to paint the entire papal suite. The Stanza della Segnatura was to be Julius' library, Bibiotheca Iulia, which would house a small collection of books intended for his personal use.

The practice during Imperial Roman times of furnishing libraries with portraits of great poets was revived in fifteenth century Italy. Raphael revolutionized this practice in the Stanza by harmoniously arranging large groups of people as one unit in his fresco compositions. In the fresco of the School of Athens, sages from different epochs are arranged as colleagues in a timeless academy. Those that have been positively identified using accurate historical evidence are: Plato, Aristotle, Socrates, Pythagoras, Euclid, Alcibiades, Diogenes, Ptolemy, Zoroaster and Raphael.

" In the centre Plato points upwards with a finger and holds his book Timeus in his hand, flanked by Aristotle with Ethics; Pythagoras is shown in the foreground intent on explaining the diatesseron. Diogenes is lying on the stairs with a dish. The pessimist philosopher, Heracleitus, is leaning against a block of marble, writing on a sheet of paper. On the right we see Euclid teaching geometry to his pupils, Zoroaster holding the heavenly sphere and Ptolemy holding the earthly sphere. On the very right with the black beret is a self-portrait of Raphael."

The fact that this painting was painted with great attention to perspective and accurate detail shows an emphasis on personal and real perspective, rather than the theistic perspective that was characteristic of the Middle Ages. The painting looks realistic to the modern eye.

These important details helped Raphael not only paint a stunning visual, but also to depict the Renaissance era and the themes central to its outstanding reign in history.
Techniques

The techniques used for this frescoe are:
Arriccio: In the preparation of a wall for fresco, the second coat of plaster, over the roughcast and under the intonaco.

Cartoon: Full-size preparatory drawings made for the purpose of transferring a design to the working surface of a painting.

Fresco: Mural painting technique in which permanent limeproof pigments, dispersed in water, are painted on freshly laid lime plaster.

Giornata: Area of a fresco that is executed within the course of a single day (from the Italian word "giorno" meaning "day").

Intonaco: In fresco, the final coat of plaster on which the painter actually works, while it is still wet.

Pouncing: The technique of copying a drawing by pricking holes in the outlines and using fine chalk or graphite powder to transfer the outline of the drawing to a surface beneath.

Secco: Technique of painting a mural on dried lime plaster or retouching a fresco after it has hardened.

Sinopia: Underdrawings for fresco paintings made with the red earth pigment sinopia, which is brushed on the arriccio layer and over which the intonaco is applied before painting.




http://www.mlahanas.de/Greeks/SchoolAthens.htm Mlahanas.de."The school of Anthens. Who is who?" 28/09/10
http://www.newbanner.com/AboutPic/SOA.html New Banner. "The school of Athens, Raphael" 28/09/10
http://www.mcah.columbia.edu/raphael/htm/raphael_athens_tech.htm Raphael. Stanza Della Segnatura. "The school of Athens: Technique" 28/09/10
http://www.suite101.com/content/raphaels-school-of-athens-a58854 Suite101.com. "Raphael's School of Athens painting" Stephanie cox. 28/09/10
http://www.vatican-patrons.org/raphael.htm Pattrons of the arts in the Vatican Museums. "The School of Athens" Prof. Arnold Nesselrath. 28/09/10
http://www.ancientworlds.net/aw/Article/555679 The Hellenic World. "The School of Athens" By Silenos Socrates.Apr 30, 2005. 28/09/10

Links!
http://un2sg4.unige.ch/athena/raphael/raf_ath4.html Clickable version
http://www.wga.hu/frames-e.html?/html/r/raphael/4stanze/1segnatu/1/index.html Detailed Images with high resolution
http://www.newbanner.com/AboutPic/athena/raphael/nbi_ath4.html Image linked to every philosopher in the painting


Thank you!