Harmony and Balance of Design

Raphael - Crucifixion (Città di Castello Altarpiece) - 1502-03 - Oil on wood, 281 x 165 cm (112.4 x 66 in.) - National Gallery, London (click photo for larger image)Paolo Giovio, Raphael’s (1483-1520) first biographer, commissioned this Madonna. Jesus has taken the cross from the boy Baptist, thus indicating the symbol of His Passion. The older boy is looking at him full of understanding, and visibly saddened. The Virgin has put her hand on his shoulder, as if to comfort him. Named after the Spanish ducal family of Alba, who owned the painting for over a century, this work was later purchased for the Hermitage in St. Petersburg, from which it was acquired for the Mellon Collection. The painting is a perfect expression of Renaissance art theory. Harmony and balance of design are found in Raphael's ability to stabilize the circular form of the painting, with a triangular arrangement of the figures and the strong horizontal line behind them, composed of the river and trees.