c. 1431-1506. Italian Renaissance painter and
engraver, active chiefly in Padua and Mantua,
where some of his frescoes remain. Paintings
such as The Agony in the Garden about 1455
(National Gallery, London) reveal a dramatic
linear style, mastery of perspective, and
strongly Classical architectural detail.
Mantegna was born in Vicenza. Early works
include frescoes for the Eremitani Church in
Padua painted during the 1440s (badly
damaged). From 1460 he worked for Ludovico
Gonzaga in Mantua, producing an outstanding
fresco series in the Ducal Palace (1470s) and
later The Triumph of Caesar (Hampton Court,
near London). He was influenced by the
sculptor Donatello and in turn influenced the
Venetian painter Giovanni Bellini (his
brother-in-law) and the German artist
Albrecht Durer.