Raphael Goes to Rome, Courtesy of the Met

This past weekend, I reviewed the first half of the Met’s Raphael: Sublime Poetry, ending with some of his portraits, among them his depiction of the young Florentine banker Bindo Altoviti, a picture the artist and early art historian Vasari called “stupendissimo.” So is the Met exhibition. With more than 40 Raphael paintings and over a hundred of some of his most vibrant drawings, there’s splendor galore. It’s the first New York blockbuster covering the work of the Renaissance’s famous, revered savant, tastemaker, and visionary.