ThenewseriesonRenaissancepainting,writtenandpresentedbyMatthewCollings,beginswithanartisticinvestigationintooneofthemostradiantandbeautifulimagesinallofarthistory,TheMadonnaoftheMeadow,paintedin1505byRaphaeddd
Renaissancearthasbecomepartofthe21st-centuryheritageindustrybutwhenRaphaelwasalive,itwasastartlingnewformofvisualexpression,andRaphael'svibrant'realism'wasstrikingandfresh.Itbecamethemodelforwesternartforthenext400years,rightupuntilthebirthofModernism.
Asmuchasitwasacultural'rebirth',theRenaissancewasalsoarevolutioninideasaboutreality.MatthewCollingssetsouttoremindusofhowradicalRenaissancepaintingswerewhentheyweremade,aswellasopeningoureyestowhatisstilltrulygreataboutthem.InthisprogrammehedeconstructsTheMadonnaoftheMeadowwiththehelpoftheverylatesthigh-resolutiondigitaltechnology,whichallowshimtoexploretheinnersecretsofRaphael'spainterlyeffectswithaclarityandatalevelofdetailneverbeforeseenontelevision.
AsMatthewsays,itisajourney'totheothersideofanillusion',revealinghowRaphaelcreatedthealluringimagesthatweresoappealingtohiswealthyRenaissanceclients-includingthePope-andwhichentrancedartistsforcenturiesafterhisdeath.MatthewexplainsthesecrettoRaphael'svibrantcolourharmonies,whichtheartistgraspedintuitively,longbeforetheadventofcolour'theory';andRaphaelalsoknewhowtoexploitcoloureffectstocreatetheimpressionofextraordinarydepthinhispaintings.