“Galatea”

This painting is one of Raphael’s most iconic and most popular paintings to this date. It was made for an on going series that never actually did get completed, but for the Villa Farnesina who a wealthy banker of this period owned and used when Rome summers got too hot. The image depicts Galatea, who was a sea nymph – a very common mystical character pictured in the Renaissance art movement – and she is being chased in this scene by Polyphemus, who is cut out of this specific segment of the large scale painting. It is very clear of her muscled torso that Raphael had painted and from my research, it is very clear that Raphael had a great knowledge of the human body. I also know that Raphael was a painter that developed a very strong style for an ideal figure of this time and this is why he is one of the most famous painters of history. The posing is of very typical Renaissance forms with the slight twist of the nude body, whilst her hair is blown to the opposing side, very fantasy like. The composition also adapts on this, where the various sea nymphs and cherubs are being pulled one side and again on the other side which actually creates a very busy and over whelming aesthetic. Because of his tactical skill in painting such loud movement, it is clear that this was a high Renaissance painting especially because there is so much going on, but there is still sense of clarity and order. When undergoing research, this idea of balance and how Raphael has portrayed so many different characters in an almost triangular shape is such an important aspect and i should definitely consider this recognized positioning and playful movement when developing my own ideas.

Another idea that kept coming up was how Raphael did not mean to paint Galatea as any one human being or person, but to represent an entire kind of his ideal beauty. A beauty that everyone should also agree with. He had only created this perception from his own mind and this is a reason why his views may be somewhat controversial. I have also discovered a group from the Victorian period named the ‘Pre-Raphalites’ who contradicted everything Rapahel taught society about the ideal being so i will look into the differences as this idea of standards in beauty or women or fashion – to relate to my discipline more – would be a very effective concept to bring from this.