Ever since The School of Athens was painted during the Italian High Renaissance in the early 16th century, it has confounded art historians and scholars. Dedicated to the role of philosophical debate, Raphael presents the quest for knowledge as a transformative force in mankind’s evolution.
His father was a prominent court painter to the Duke of Urbino, teaching his boy basic painting techniques from a young age. He also educated his son in the principles of humanist thinking, and the works of the classicists. Raphael was 11 when his father died in 1494, leaving him to manage the art workshop.
