In this artwork, how is the Materials discussed?
The altarpiece was painted using tempera and oil on wood. Tempera is an egg based painting substance that dries quickly making it easy to use and layer over, a popular choice among artists during the period. Bellini also used some oil paints to create more definition with depth, soft edges, tone transitions, and better color pigments.Part of the top is truncated: just below the arch still shows the damaged that was incurred during the removal by the French under Napoleon (see below: Theft and return). While in France, the painting underwent a major physical transformation: the painting surface was lifted off the supporting wood panel and then it was applied with glue to canvas. Today, the canvas painting has been installed in the church, but over a different altar of the church than the original one, therefore it is not considered in situ. The painting was also cut on the bottom so that it would fit this space. It would be easy to think this was the original altar, since the carved stone columns and their capitals practically mirror those painted in Bellini's altarpiece.
tempera Tempera