Today is Christmas, the day when Christians the world over celebrate the Nativity of Jesus. We at WAG thought you’d enjoy this Madonna and Child by the man who was the past master of the subject, the refined, ravishing, rapturous High Renaissance artist Raphael. The artist, whose 500th death anniversary was eclipsed by Covid-19 this year, has also been eclipsed in modern appreciation by his contemporaries, Leonardo and Michelangelo. Still, for sheer beauty, it’s hard to top him.
Want to learn more? Thames & Hudson has published an exquisite, cloth-bound new translation of Giorgio Vasari’s “The Life of Raphael.” It’s filled with illustrations that demonstrate why he is worthy of your time this holiday.
From all of us at WAG, may your white Christmas also be merry and bright.
– Georgette Gouveia
