What was the relationship between the three great painters? What rivalries existed between them?

Pope Pius commissioned Michelangelo (1475-1564) to decorate the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel. The sculptor of ‘David’, who was at the height of his career, accepted this monumental task with reluctance.

Behind the scenes, a young, aspiring painter spied on his older colleague and had no qualms about adopting his expressive style. He was not yet 30 years old and called Raphael (1483-1520). The child prodigy worked in the pontiff's public apartments.

The death of Julius II and the election of his successor Leo X in February 1513 disrupted the rivalry. Then, a third competitor arrived in the capital: Leonardo da Vinci (1452-1519), a close confidant of Giuliano de' Medici, the new Pope's brother.

The 61-year-old master enjoyed special privileges that, among other things, made it possible for him to dissect corpses for anatomical research.

There are no sources proving that the three geniuses saw one another during their time in the city, but it’s unlikely that their paths didn’t cross. One thing is certain: the concurrent presence of Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo and Raphael in Rome was the highlight of the Italian High Renaissance.
 

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