Raphael at the National Gallery

Today we enjoyed the Raphael exhibition at the National Gallery and I’d like to find out more about him. I got the impression that this talented and ambitious artist clearly felt constrained by the art studio that he inherited at such a young age from his father and all the “Madonna and Child” paintings that were his bread and butter; he moved from Perugia to Florence and then Rome, worked for two Popes and branched out into many other forms of art including sculpture and architecture. He was very successful in his lifetime but knows what more he would have achieved if he had lived longer? 

We decided to join the National Gallery because the cost of getting in to two exhibitions would be about the same as a year’s membership and I’m quite keen to see the upcoming Lucien Freud exhibition in the autumn. 

We had started our day by travelling  to the impressive British Library - my first visit there - which was fascinating. I loved looking at all the literary exhibits such as Jane Austen’s little portable writing desk, Anne Boleyn’s Bible, correspondence about the publication of James Joyce’s Ulysses and so much more. Then on our way to the National Gallery we stopped at my favourite Caffe Tropea in Russell Square for lunch. I am so fond of that café. 

By the time we got back to our Ibis at Canning Town we were ready for a rest before going to Ally and Cat’s flat for dinner. Cat cooked us a delicious pasta dish last night after our expedition to the theatre, so tonight we brought dinner in the form of two M&S meal deals, which Cat kindly heated up for us, and the four of us had a lovely evening together.