This episode looks at how the Gonzaga family of Mantua shaped their political image through art patronage. Ludovico Gonzaga, eager to raise his court’s prestige, brought the painter Andrea Mantegna to Mantua in 1460. Under Gonzaga patronage, Mantegna transformed court painting with his mastery of perspective and classical form. Their collaboration produced the fresco cycle in the Camera degli Sposi, a landmark of Renaissance art that blended dynastic portraiture with political messaging. Together, they turned Mantua into one of the most influential artistic centers of fifteenth-century Italy. 

Works discussed: 

Andrea Mantegna, Camera degli sposi / Camera picta, 1465-1475, Mantua.https://www.wga.hu/html_m/m/mantegna/07/index.html

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