Raphael

Raphael: His Life and Works

Raphael's Redemption

From Captive to Consort and Chosen. Lord Teo’s love holds Raphael Lewis of the Mars Colony firmly, giving him everything he’s ever wanted – love, commitment, fidelity. Agreeing to convince the inhabitants of Ta’Kun to accept a compromise from the Chi’NoSa, Raphael is ready to do what he must to heal Ta’Kun, save the Ta’kunisi from destruction, and Lord Teo from disgrace. He did not know he would be repudiated, left defenseless and alone, only to be betrayed for being who he is and what he can give. Raphael’s life is held in the balance between love and loss. Will Teo save Raphael, or will their love become a sacrifice to the Chi’NoSa? Please note: On page violence and sexual situations. This is an ongoing series focused on one couple. You need to read Raphael's Rescue to be in the know!

Raphael’s Ostrich

Raphael’s Ostrich begins with a little-studied aspect of Raphael’s painting—the ostrich, which appears as an attribute of Justice, painted in the Sala di Costantino in the Vatican. Una Roman D’Elia traces the cultural and artistic history of the ostrich from its appearances in ancient Egyptian hieroglyphs to the menageries and grotesque ornaments of sixteenth-century Italy. Following the complex history of shifting interpretations given to the ostrich in scientific, literary, religious, poetic, and satirical texts and images, D’Elia demonstrates the rich variety of ways in which people made sense of this living “monster,” which was depicted as the embodiment of heresy, stupidity, perseverance, justice, fortune, gluttony, and other virtues and vices. Because Raphael was revered as a god of art, artists imitated and competed with his ostrich, while religious and cultural critics complained about the potential for misinterpreting such obscure imagery. This book not only considers the history of the ostrich but also explores how Raphael’s painting forced viewers to question how meaning is attributed to the natural world, a debate of central importance in early modern Europe at a time when the disciplines of modern art history and natural history were developing. The strangeness of Raphael’s ostrich, situated at the crossroads of art, religion, myth, and natural history, both reveals lesser-known sides of Raphael’s painting and illuminates major cultural shifts in attitudes toward nature and images in the Renaissance. More than simply an examination of a single artist or a single subject, Raphael’s Ostrich offers an accessible, erudite, and charming alternative to Vasari’s pervasive model of the history of sixteenth-century Italian art.