how the Italian painter sublimates religious iconography

In a circular canvas, Mary holds Jesus to her heart. Both stare at the viewer. This Virgin in the chair (1513-1514) is one of Raphael’s masterpieces.

By bringing together preparatory drawings, paintings and digital projections, the Palais des Beaux-Arts in Lille shows how the Italian painter brought the theme to its peak. From his arrival in Florence in 1504, the native of Urbino stopped representing hieratic Madonnas from the front. He draws on the teachings of two of his contemporaries: pyramidal composition, natural settings and the play of eyes in Leonardo da Vinci; the dynamism of attitudes in Michelangelo.

And he adds his touch: the luminosity of the colors and the overall harmony. “He gave this divine character the carnal dimension of a tender mother,” summarizes curator Cordélia Hattori. Beyond that, the artist has perfected the figure of an ideal woman who will inspire generations of creators. Starting with Ingres, in a completely different register, with his extraordinary Great Odalisque (1814).