Andrea Mantegna, San Zeno Altarpiece

We're in the Basilica of San Zeno in Verona in northern Italy. Verona is famous because of Romeo and Juliet. And the two gentlemen of Verona by Shakespeare. It's also a place where Christianity had taken hold by the 3rd century, that is the 200s. Zeno was the 8th bishop of Verona. So we're talking about a really important early Christian figure. We think he came from Mauritania in Africa. And the basilica that we're standing in is only the most recent of many churches on this site dedicated to San Zeno. The first one was likely built to house his remains. Those remains are still in the crypt directly below the high altar. Now we're here today specifically because of the fabulous altar piece by the great Renaissance painter Andrea Mantegna. The patron came from a noble Venetian family, Gregorio Carrere, a highly educated man who, like Andrea Mantegna, was very interested in the culture of classical antiquity. The church is from the late 11th or early 12th century. And it's such a different style than the style of this painting and its frame. I want to spend just a moment looking at the frame. It is absolutely spectacular. And we know it's original. Mantegna either designed this frame himself or had a lot of say with the craftsman who carved it. Mantegna was especially interested in classical architecture, in renewing those ancient forms. We can see, for example, these wonderful fluted columns. There's a complex entablature. And then I love the little curls at the top of the gentle arcing pediment. If you accept the conceit that Mantegna is offering us, that we're looking into a kind of classical pavilion, you realize that the frame's columns are continued in the pictorial space. Right in the center, the Virgin and Child. On either side, four saints. Mantegna was a master of linear perspective with the vanishing point at the figure of Mary. This is what is known as a sacra confezzione, where figures from different periods of time are brought together. And the idea is that we're seeing not a moment in historical time, but the court of heaven. But it's such an interesting way to depict the heavenly, because we are in a classical architectural environment, complete with all of this rich relief carving that we might expect to see on a classical building. But of course, the classical buildings that existed in Mantegna's time would have been ruins. Here, this building is completely intact. And look at the way that Mantegna has contrasted the living figures, who are so beautifully and brightly painted, against the much more monochromatic rendering of the classical architecture, which is largely grays highlighted with gold. Let's just take a quick look at this garland that hangs so brightly in the foreground. You can see laurel leaves, perhaps peaches and maybe lemons, and then coral that seems to be strung almost like a necklace just over the Virgin Mary. And above that, you can see some rock crystal and then an egg. All of these things have various symbolism, many of them referring to Mary's virginity and her purity. But just behind the garland, we're treated to this incredible relief carving that shows putti holding their own garlands over their shoulders. Mary is sitting on a beautiful throne. And a classicizing one. She looks out to her left. Christ looks to his right. Christ has his left arm around his mother, his hand resting on her shoulder. Mary wraps her right arm around Christ, holding his feet. Christ stands in perfect contrapposto. This pose derived from ancient Greek and Roman sculpture, where the weight is shifted onto one leg. I want to point out the very curious halo around the Virgin Mary's head. It seems to be carved of stone. And it is actually a rendering of the rose window that Mary faces in the church. Mary's throne is draped with a West Asian carpet. It's a very common motif in 15th century Italian painting. But it also speaks for Venetians at this time to the Holy Land. It's so interesting to me that Mantegna put the angels behind those volutes, so that their faces are even a little bit cut off. He's really emphasizing layers of depth here. Well, you actually see that in the carving below the throne itself. You can see the legs of putti. And the tops of their bodies are completely obscured by the carpet. And so you have a sense that the artist is absolutely willing to sacrifice forms in order to create a sense of reality. Well, and then all of that is topped by the two musical angels in the foreground. The first one sings and plucks her instrument. And the figure on the left looks so intent. And both of their instruments are deeply foreshortened. The composition is coming out of the tradition of the medieval triptych. Mantegna is very intentionally differentiating this painting by creating a continuous space. Normally, we would have three very separate spaces with the background in gold. Let's look at the panel on the left. We have St. Peter holding keys, St. Paul holding a sword, St. John, who looks young and sweet, as he always does. In the background, we see St. Zeno, the named saint of the church. And on the right side, furthest from us, is St. Benedict. And this church is part of a Benedictine monastery. Next, we have St. Lawrence. And you can tell because he's holding the grill. Then we see this magnificent figure in these extraordinary vestments. This is St. Gregory. And then finally, St. John the Baptist. We can see the veins in his left hand and just this perfect use of modeling of light and dark. And as we're standing here in the church, we can see that the light is coming from the right, the same direction that we see in the painting. I'm just struck by the pinks and the golds and the blues and the purples and the greens, even the attention that Mantegna paid to their hair and their beards, their individuality. The perspective is perfect. We are looking up at these figures. Our eye level is just above the level of their feet. And every diagonal is helping to achieve this sense of deep space. That makes me wonder what this was like to see in the 15th century, figures who appeared so alive, a space that appeared so real, so deep. In many ways, Mantegna epitomizes so much of the concerns of the Renaissance. But this painting tells another story. Centuries after this painting was completed, Napoleon invaded Italy, and he brought with him art experts to identify key works of art, which were then brought to France. This painting suffered that fate. The three paintings of the Prudella have never been returned. The central image is actually itself quite famous. It's an image of the crucifixion, and it is today in the Louvre in Paris. The other paintings are in regional museums in France. On the left, we see the agony in the garden in the center of the crucifixion. On the right, the resurrection. So together with this image of the court of heaven above, we have the full Christian story of mankind's redemption and salvation.