Raphaël Experience

We are often critical of exhibitions that are overrun by multimedia, which frequently deters us from looking at the works without providing any really useful information. Despite its ridiculous title, "Experience Raphael" brilliantly demonstrates that the opposite is possible. Everything about it is interesting, especially as you can visit the exhibition in at least two ways. Those who are allergic to these devices can concentrate on Lille’s drawings - which are at the heart of the exhibition - and on the few comparative works. Those who take the time to look at everything will learn a great deal, aided by a clever museography.

In terms of both quality and quantity, Lille is one of the museums in the world with the largest collection of Raphael’s drawings. This collection comes from the bequest of the painter Jean-Baptiste Wicar. A commissioner in charge of recovering works in Italy for the Museum, he appropriated some of them for his own use. His first collection, which included many works by Raphael, was stolen in Florence, and he built up a second, which he sold, and then a third, buying back works that had been part of the first. Today, no fewer than thirty-seven of Raphael’s drawings, unanimously recognised as autographs, are kept here, in addition to works attributed solely to him or his pupils.
Although the Lille collection was published in the museum’s summary catalogue of Italian drawings in 1997 and in an exhibition in 2002-2003, it is regrettable that the catalogue accompanying the new event does not reserve space, despite some very interesting essays, for a new exhaustive inventory of the drawings in order to provide a clear understanding of what is new since these events. Ultimately, the book is less clear than the exhibition itself.

The exhibition is so rich that it will take some time to understand how it should be approached. Each group of Raphael’s leaves relating to a composition is presented in relation to the painting they are preparing. Except…