Michelangelo, The Virgin and Child with the Infant Saint John (The Taddei Tondo), c 1504-05, marble, 106.8cm, RA, bequeathed by Sir George Beaumont, 1830 [Royal Academy of Arts, photo: Prudence Cuming Associates Ltd]

LATE January 1504, Florence, and quite a few prominent artists gather to discuss the siting of Michelangelo’s statue of David, which is nearing completion.

More than half a millennium later we are still talking about some of these and the RA’s latest show* focuses on two in particular, Michelangelo (1475-1564) and Leonardo (1452-1519), famously rivals for prestigious commissions, and a third, the younger Raphael (1483-1520) who would arrive in Florence later in that year.

Curators Scott Nethersole and Per Rumberg explore the dynamics of the older rivals’ interactions here and in a comprehensive show catalogue. They conclude that the competition between the two “did not lead to an appropriation of each other’s ideas but manifested their fundamentally different visual priorities: Leonardo concerned with facial expressions and atmospheric effects to generate emotion, Michelangelo with the human body as an expressive agent”.

Raphael, after Michelangelo Buonarroti, David, c 1505-08, pen and brown ink on paper, 39.6 x 21.9cm [© The Trustees of the British Museum]

Raphael they describe as first and foremost a painter – they explore how the older men influenced his work – and they stress the show is fundamentally about “the role of drawing in the creative process”.

So with outstanding pieces, including Michelangelo’s “Taddei Tondo” marble, Raphael’s “Bridgewater Madonna” and Leonardo’s “Burlington House Cartoon” (back at the RA for the first time in 60 plus years from the National Gallery where it now lives) and with some 45 works in all, the exhibition also features preparatory drawings, studies for Leonardo’s commission Battle of Anghiari and Michelangelo’s Battle of Cascina, neither completed.
Raphael’s studies also include loans from far and wide, including the British Museum, Ashmolean, Albertina, Uffizi, and more.

And loans from Charles III and the Royal Collection of works by all three artists feature prominently.

Attributed to Titian, An Ostrich, c 1550 [© Royal Collection Enterprises Limited 2024 Royal Collection Trust]

This is notable in itself but particularly as the King’s Gallery has its own show, coincidentally running until March next year, with 160 works from 80 artists and billed as “the widest ranging exhibition of Italian Renaissance drawings ever shown in the UK”**.

Curator Martin Clayton offers us more than 30 works on display for the first time and 12 more for the first time in this country.

It’s a unique opportunity to see drawings many of which cannot be on permanent display for conservation reasons. And while the big beasts are here, including the three in the RA show, the choice includes “lesser-known names”.

While most of the studies, cartoons, and preparatory drawings were never intended for such display, some are more finished than others and reflect changes in attitudes owing to major contemporary advances in technology and availability of materials; and marketing.

Fra Angelico, The bust of a cleric, c 1447-50, metalpoint, pen and ink and white heightening on ochre prepared paper [ © Royal Collection Enterprises Limited 2024 Royal Collection Trust]

Highlights include a chalk drawing of an ostrich, c 1550 now attributed to Titian (c1487-1576), Raphael’s Three Graces and, albeit the earlier, and the earliest in the show, The bust of a cleric by Fra Angelico (c1400-1455).

As a snapshot of what the royal collection holds, this is a fascinating insight but, as we are reminded at the show, there are almost 2,000 sheets of Italian Renaissance drawings it has in all.

* Michelangelo, Leonardo, Raphael: Florence, c 1504 is at the Royal Academy of Arts, Burlington House, Piccadilly, W1J 0BD until February 16. www.royalacademy.org.uk
**Drawing the Italian Renaissance is at The King’s Gallery, Buckingham Palace, SW1A 1AA until March 9. www.rct.uk