Artist 7: Raphael

Yes. I am going down the list of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles for ideas on which artists to do. Well, partly. I can't deny that these artists are some of my favorite and I absolutely adore their work. (I can't deny the TNMTs were badass either) What I like about Raphael's style of painting is that he reminds me of a combination of Leonardo and Simone Martini. What I mean by that is he tends to use the S-curve in some of his figures and elongates them like Simone Martini's paintings, and he does a nice job with backgrounds and, well, his figures remind me of Leonardo's, maybe minus the tsfumato and has a bit less contrast.

In his altar piece "The Wedding of the Virgin" you can clearly see the S-curve used and the elegance he gives every single figure, even those in the background. His colors used are also much brighter than that of Leonardo which has its pros and cons. Brighter colors look more fresh, yet I personally am a fan of the darker color scheme. Big surprise, right? Anyway, I think I like the appearance of his figures as well as Simone Martini's the best as my top artists, and I like Leonardo's shading, colors, clothing and faces the best. Don't get me wrong though, I love them all dearly!!

Another thing I noticed about Raphael is his tendency to put real or similar to the real thing buildings in his backgrounds, which gives his pictures more relevance, interest, and intrigue.

It's a shame Raphael died so young (37) because I think he would have had an incredibly successful career ahead of him.

(Pictured here is Raphael's "Galatea")

Now, on a side note, more related to senior sem thinking I suppose you can say, I listen to music 100% of the time I do art. It obviously influences my stuff, and as discussed a bit it is most likely going to have a big influence on my senior sem stuffs (Like KISS, Motley Crue's costumes etc.) So, why not share some of my influence and one of my current personal favs so you can get inside my head for about 5 min. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yDNkjWv-Lhw&feature=related Razed in Black "Oh My Goth!"