Raphael /

With the approach the quincentenary of Raphael's death in 2020, a surge of publications can be expected. This outpouring is anticipated by this beautiful volume documenting a 2017-18 exhibition at Vienna's Albertina Museum. What makes the catalogue stand apart is its integration of the Renaissance master's drawings and paintings from all phases of his career, providing a holistic approach to his creative process. Drawings from the Albertina and Oxford's Ashmolean Museum were the impetus and focus for the exhibition and thus are also the subject of three of the catalogue's essays. Albertina curator Achim Gnann discusses the functions and stylistic features of Raphael's drawings, Thomas (Univ. of Kent, UK) explores the concept of invention and other art-theoretical associations that might be deduced from these works, and Whistler (Ashmolean) focuses on the eloquence of Raphael's hands, both in terms of Renaissance concepts of creativity and the more explicit communicative roles that drawn hands evoke. The inclusion of exquisite reproductions of the paintings with their preliminary drawings allows for a rich, satisfying experience. Summing Up: Highly recommended. Lower-division undergraduates through faculty and professionals. --Julia K. Dabbs, University of Minnesota--Morris