San Luca Polyptych (1453)

While working on the Ovetari frescoes, Mantegna took on other commissions, including the San Luca Polyptych for the chapel dedicated to St Luke in the church of Santa Giustina in Padua. The very traditional conception of this altarpiece, which is designed along Gothic lines, reflects a patron with conservative tastes in art. The altarpiece is divided into several panels and the size of its figures varies in accordance with the Byzantine hierarchy of saints. Like similar images in Byzantine art, they stand isolated against a golden background that symbolizes the all-embracing presence of God.