Focus on San Zeno Altarpiece (Mantegna) and analyze the Patron and commission.
The San Zeno Altarpiece was commissioned around 1456 to 1459 by Gregorio Correr, a Venetian nobleman, humanist scholar, and administrator for and abbot of the Church of San Zeno. The San Zeno altarpiece was commissioned and made to depict a heavenly realm. This was intended so the viewers would aspire for a position in the "court of heaven" in communion with the religious figures portrayed in the altarpiece. Furthermore, St. Zeno the patron saint of Verona, is believed to have introduced Christianity to Verona, therefore this altarpiece is named in his honor. After his work on the San Zeno Altarpiece, Mantegna finally arrived in Mantua in the year 1460 to serve as the court artist to the House of Gonzaga, the leading princely family of the city. Mantegna had actually been hired by Ludovico III Gonzaga, Marquis of Mantua, three years before, in 1457, but disagreements about Mantegna's pay and status delayed his arrival and it was during this period of postponement that he worked on the San Zeno Altarpiece.
Church of San Zeno Ludovico III Gonzaga, Marquis of Mantua altarpiece Verona Altarpiece St. Zeno House of Gonzaga humanist