The Vision of Ezekiel Raphael (1483-1520)

Description of Raphael Santi’s The Vision of Ezekiel

In the image one can clearly see how much Raphael was influenced by the work of another artist, Michelangelo. A sacred group is depicted in the center of the canvas-the four evangelists are depicted by four beasts. In the center is the unclothed God the Father. His body is strong and young, surrounded by an eagle, an angel, a lion and a bull, with two cherubim babies sitting at his sides. Visually, God resembles the pagan god Jupiter. During the Renaissance, God was depicted as an old man, who necessarily had long gray hair and a beard that waved. The tiny figure of Ezekiel is only visible to us at the bottom of the painting, with a bright beam of light directed at him. The lower part of the painting depicts a landscape, with a tree in the center. A heavy, overcast sky hangs over it.

The painting is dedicated to a chapter in the Bible that deals with the Jewish prophet Ezekiel. He had a vision that was accompanied by natural disasters - strong winds, flames, and a glow all around. In the midst of the fire, Ezekiel saw four animals with eagle, lion, bull and human shapes unknown to the beholder. Two wings covered their bodies, and two were crossed and covered something from Ezekiel that they were protecting.

Despite its small size, the painting managed to convey to the viewer an idea of what a master Raphael Santi was. He had the difficult task of showing everyone how swift the flight of God the Father was.

The Vision of Ezekiel was painted in oil on wood, 40x30cm. The author painted it for the Count of Verona - Vincenzo Ercolani.