CANIGIANI HOLY FAMILY By Raphael Santi
With this devotional painting in large format, the young Raphael competed with Leonardo and Michelangelo in Florence at the beginning of the 16th century. The figures of the Holy Family are arranged in a strict pyramidal composition. The familial is revealed on the inside: in the visual lines and referential alignments that develop between the figures and tighten the composition. The precise observation of human behavior makes the picture appear natural despite the apparent austerity. The Italian masters of the Renaissance present the saints of their devotional pictures in front of wide landscapes with city views. In doing so, they follow the example of Old Dutch painting, which attracted a great deal of attention, especially in Florence. Thus Raphael also quotes the architecture north of the Alps, which incidentally serves the purpose of locating the events depicted in a foreign country.
