Raphael. Versions

Exhibition December 16, 2020 − March 31, 2021
An exhibition opens at the Museum of the Academy of Arts in St. Petersburg "Raphael. Versions "dedicated to the 500th anniversary of the artist's death.

The exposition includes more than a hundred works of Russian and foreign art from the collection of the Museum of the Academy of Arts, reflecting the main stages of the work of one of the greatest masters of the High Renaissance.

In Russia, the discovery of Raphael begins much later than in Europe, under Catherine II. The beginning of the activities of the Imperial Academy of Arts dates back to the time of her reign, for whose students an appeal to the work of Raphael became part of the compulsory curriculum. Traditionally, the best students of the St. Petersburg Imperial Academy of Arts went abroad to “improve in the arts”. As an assignment, the Council of the Academy directed the retirees to the works of outstanding artists, from which copies should be made. It was these works, performed by famous Russian painters - A. P. Losenko, F. A. Bruni, P. V. Basin, K. P. Bryullov, that became the basis of the exhibition.

Prepared based on materials from the museum website Academy of Arts in St. Petersburg.