The Prophet Isaiah (Raphael)

The Prophet Isaiah

Artist	Raphael
Year	1512
Type	Fresco
Dimensions	250 cm × 155 cm (98 in × 61 in)
Location	Basilica di Sant'Agostino, Rome

The Prophet Isaiah is a fresco located in Basilica di Sant'Agostino, an early Renaissance church in Rome. It is an Italian Renaissance painting, influenced by Michaelangelo's work on the Sistine Chapel ceiling.

Isaiah, a powerful figure, gives the illusion of a three-dimensional character, flanked by putti figures. He carries a Hebrew scroll with his prophecy foretelling the birth of Christ. There is also a message to Saint Anne. Due to wear, Raphael's work has been retouched by other painters over time. In 1960, the fresco was restored to Raphael's vision.^[1]

St. Anne Altar

Johann of Goritz (also Gorizius), from Luxembourg, commissioned Raphael to paint the prophet Isaiah in fresco on a pillar in the Basilica di Sant'Agostino.^[2] Soon after his arrival in Rome, his name was Latinised to Janus Corycius. He held the office of receiver of requests.^[3]

Janus was a patron of the arts. Wishing to leave a mark in Rome, he had a chapel built in the Sant'Agostino basilica, with an altar commissioned in 1512 honoring his patron saint Saint Anne. ^[3] The altar included this fresco of Isaiah and a marble grouping of Virgin with St. Anne by Andrea Sansovino.^[2] The Saint Anne altar was intended as his tomb.^[4]

At the dedication of the church, a steady stream of literary friends honored Corycius with verses that were later was editor and publisher of the 1524 book Coryciana by Blosius Palladius, later Bishop of Foligno. The book named 120 poets who contributed verses that became the book.^[3]

Michaelangelo influence

Much comparison is made of the Raphael fresco Prophet Isaiah to the work of Michaelangelo, Ernst Gombrich going as far to suggest that Michaelangelo may have hired Raphael to work on Ezekiel for the Sistine Chapel, which he believes is much more reflective of Raphael than of Michaelangelo. This would have allowed Raphael to both gain influence by Michaelangelo and also contribute to a piece of work on the Sistine Chapel.^[5]

Within the Prophet of Isaiah, noted influences by Michaelangelo include:

similarity of figural composition
Isaiah is self-enclosed
the manner in which the scroll is held, in a spiral formula as evolved by Michaelangelo^[5]

Legend has it that Corycius complained to Michaelangelo that he had been overcharged for the fresco, to which Michaelangelo responded, "the knee alone is worth the price."

References

↑ Brenda Harness, Art Historian. "The Prophet Isaiah by Painter Raphael Sanzio". Fine Art Touch. Retrieved March 17, 2011.
1 2 Passavant, J (1872). Raphael of Urbino and his father Giovanni Santi. London and New York: MacMillan and Company. p. 109.
1 2 3 Creighton, M (1897). A History of the Papacy from the Great Schism to the Sack of Rome. 6. London, New York and Bombay: Longmans, Green and Company. p. 201.
↑ Stinger, C. The Renaissance in Rome. p. 352.
1 2 Gombrich, E (1987). Woodfield, R, ed. Reflections on the history of art: views and reviews. Berkeley and Los Angeles: University of California Press. p. 93. ISBN 0-520-06189-6.

Raphael

Early works	The Kinnaird Resurrection Baronci Altarpiece St. Sebastian Oddi Altar Solly Madonna Mond Crucifixion Three Graces St Michael Portrait of a Man Connestabile Madonna Madonna and Child The Marriage of the Virgin Vision of a Knight St George Colonna Altarpiece Portrait of Perugino ¹ Madonna and Child with the Book

Florentine period	Portrait of Elisabetta Gonzaga ² Portrait of Emilia Pia da Montefeltro ² Portrait of Guidobaldo da Montefeltro Self-portrait Madonna of the Grand Duke Ansidei Madonna Young Man with an Apple Christ Blessing Madonna Terranuova Madonna of the Goldfinch Madonna of the Meadow Esterhazy Madonna Small Cowper Madonna St George and the Dragon La donna gravida Portrait of Agnolo Doni Portrait of Maddalena Doni Madonna of the Pinks Young Woman with Unicorn Madonna with Beardless St Joseph Saint Catherine of Alexandria Canigiani Holy Family La belle jardinière Deposition of Christ Portrait of a Young Woman Tempi Madonna Madonna Colonna Madonna de Bogota

Roman period	Portrait of Cardinal Alessandro Farnese La disputa The School of Athens Madonna of Loreto Aldobrandini Madonna Madonna with the Blue Diadem Portrait of a Cardinal Alba Madonna Niccolini-Cowper Madonna The Parnassus Cardinal and Theological Virtues The Prophet Isaiah The Expulsion of Heliodorus from the Temple Portrait of Pope Julius II Madonna of Foligno Madonna with the Fish Triumph of Galatea Sistine Madonna Madonna della seggiola Madonna dell'Impannata Madonna della tenda The Fire in the Borgo The Meeting of Leo the Great and Attila Deliverance of Saint Peter The Mass at Bolsena Portrait of Bindo Altoviti The Sibyls Ecstasy of St. Cecilia Portrait of Balthasar Castiglione La donna velata Portrait of Tommaso Inghirami Palazzo Branconio dell'Aquila Portrait of Andrea Navagero and Agostino Beazzano Portrait of Cardinal Bibbiena Church of Sant'Eligio degli Orefici Creation of the World Transfiguration Portrait of Pope Leo X with Two Cardinals Christ Falling on the Way to Calvary The Holy Family of Francis I Ezekiel's Vision St. Michael Vanquishing Satan Madonna of the Rose Self-portrait with a friend La fornarina Visitation Portrait of a Young Man Miraculous Draught of Fishes Christ's Charge to Peter Healing of the Lame Man Death of Ananias Stoning of St. Stephen Conversion of the Proconsul Sacrifice at Lystra St Paul in Prison St Paul Preaching in Athens Palazzo Jacopo da Brescia

¹ Also attributed to Lorenzo di Credi ² Attributed

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