Andrea Mantegna, born around 1431 in Isola di Carturo near Padua, was one of the foremost painters of the Early Renaissance, whose strong sculptural sense and daring perspective helped shape Italian art in the 15th and early 16th centuries.
Mantegna was the second son of a carpenter named Biagio. At around age eleven, he entered the studio of Francesco Squarcione in Padua. Under Squarcione he studied classical sculpture, reliefs, and the lit drenched with ancient Roman form, learning early the powers of perspective and a disciplined, almost austere treatment of the human figure.
However, conflicts arose: by age 17, Mantegna had left Squarcione’s studio, later claiming that the elder master profited from his youthful work without fair recompense.
Career in Verona and Mantua
After early works in Padua, Mantegna’s reputation grew. In 1460, Marquis Ludovico III Gonzaga of Mantua appointed him as court artist. By 1466 he had settled in Mantua permanently with his family. The patronage was generous; Mantegna’s salary was such that, even by the standards of the day, it marked him as a major figure.
One of his masterpieces from this period is the Camera degli Sposi (Wedding Chamber) in the Ducal Palace of Mantua. Executed between about 1465 and 1474, the complex frescoes, including playful scenes, portraits of the Gonzaga family, and a daring oculus in the ceiling, display Mantegna’s mastery of space, foreshortening, and illusionistic architecture.
Late Period and Major Works
Mantegna’s style is often described as rigid, sculptural, and disciplined. He frequently lowered horizon lines to create grand, monument-like compositions, and his figures tend to be slim, tense, and muscular. His landscapes often have a dry luminosity, hinting at antiquity with classical architectural motifs and a strong sense of relief.
Some of his famous late works include St. Sebastian, The Lamentation over the Dead Christ, and the Triumphs of Caesar, a series of tempera compositions completed around 1492, commissioned by the Gonzaga court. He also worked under Pope Innocent VIII in Rome, and later did mythological scenes for Isabella d’Este in Mantua, such as for her studiolo.
Legacy and Death
Mantegna also practiced engraving: his prints (whether directly by him or via his workshop) show powerful design and careful hatching to create shadow and volume. His artistic impact was considerable: he influenced younger artists such as Giovanni Bellini (his brother‐in‐law), Antonio da Correggio, and even northern European masters like Albrecht Dürer, who admired both his engravings and his painterly techniques.
Despite declining health in his final years, Andrea Mantegna continued to work. He died in Mantua on 13 September 1506. In 1516 his sons erected a monument in his memory in the church of Sant’Andrea in Mantua.
