Rafael (1483-1520). Italian painter and architect of the Renaissance. His full name was Raffaello Sanzio da Urbino. His works are admired for the simplicity of form and composition, and elegance with which he captured the neoplatonic ideal of beauty of the human body. Along with the Michelangelo and Leonardo da Vinci, Rafael is among the three greatest masters of his time. Rafael was very hardworking and ran an unusually large workshop (for example, he painted the frescoes in the Apostolic Palace in the Vatican). During his life, he greatly influenced the world of art; however, after his early death, this influence was overshadowed by the similarly active Michelangelo. His compositions were studied and admired as a model of academic painting until the 19th century. His paintings are characterized by the beauty and dignity of character, precision and purity of painting.