The Renaissance was probably the most influential and fertile period of European cultural history. We are all familiar with the giants of High Renaissance art - Michelangelo, Leonardo, Raphael - but how much do you really know about how it all started and why it was so revolutionary? This easily accessible, fresh and beautiful introduction to this wonderful world takes you from the stirrings of a revival in classical learning and humanist thought in late medieval Italy through the application of technical developments in painting and scientific knowledge, to the blossoming of astounding artworks that we all know and love, reaching its peak in the sixteenth century. A digestible introduction to the background and history of the Renaissance is followed by a gallery of treasured works focusing on the most popular Italian art, from Giotto's frescoes and Fra Angelico's delightful Annunciation, to Botticelli's willowy Venuses, that ceiling of Michelangelo's and the master of Venetian painting, Titian.

The archetypal artist of the High Renaissance, Raphael is regarded as one of the greatest painters of all time. Particularly noted for his paintings of Madonna and Child, his art spanned religious and classical subjects and included a number of portraits and frescoes that are renowned for the excellent skill and grandeur they convey. This beautifully illustrated new book discusses Raphael's life as well as the themes, styles and techniques of his art, along with examples of his most famous works like The School of Athens, Sistine Madonna, The Triumph of Galatea and Transfiguration.