Raffaello's Portrait of Pope Julius II on Loan to Bologna's Pinacoteca Nazionale

The Pinacoteca Nazionale di Bologna is hosting the exhibition 'Giulio II e Raffaello. Una nuova stagione del Rinascimento a Bologna' from October 8, 2022, to February 5, 2023. The centerpiece is Raphael's 'Portrait of Pope Julius II' (1511–1512), on exceptional loan from the National Gallery of London. The loan reciprocates the National Gallery's earlier borrowing of Raphael's 'Estasi di Santa Cecilia fra i Santi' for its summer exhibition. The portrait depicts the pope in a half-length, slightly hunched pose, turned to the right, introspective rather than hieratic. Co-curator Maria Luisa Pacelli notes that Raphael's composition breaks with tradition, focusing on the pope's psychology. Copies by artists like Titian (at the Galleria Palatina in Florence) attest to the work's influence. The exhibition also explores the historical context of Pope Julius II's triumphant entry into Bologna on November 11, 1506, which ousted the Bentivoglio family and subjugated the city to the Papal States.