Part of a series of frescoes in the Vatican’s Apostolic Palace, The School of Athens offers a synthesis of technical refinement, linear perspective through perfected architecture, and the personification of philosophical ideals.
The Italian Renaissance reached its zenith in the first decades of the 16th century, and Raphael Sanzio’s School of Athens(1510–12) is a culmination of the era’s classical style and spirit. Part of a series of frescoes in the Vatican’s Apostolic Palace, The School of Athens offers a synthesis of technical refinement, linear perspective through perfected architecture, and the personification of philosophical ideals. The figures represent the most renowned minds of antiquity (Plato and Aristotle are framed at center by concentric arches) as well as a number of the artist’s contemporaries, including Leonardo, Michelangelo, and Raphael himself.