the famous frescoes of the carmera degli sposi were painted for the duke of mantua by pinturicchio.
the famous frescoes of the carmera degli sposi were painted for the duke of mantua by pinturicchio.
the famous frescoes of the carmera degli sposi were painted for the duke of mantua by?
pinturicchio
the camera degli sposi ("bridal chamber"), sometimes known as the camera picta ("painted chamber"), is a room frescoed with illusionistic paintings by andrea mantegna in the ducal palace, mantua, italy. during the 15th century when the camera degli sposi was painted, mantua was ruled by the gonzaga who maintained mantua’s political autonomy from its much stronger neighbors milan and venice by bidding their support out as a mercenary state. ludovico iii gonzaga, the commissioner of the camera degli sposi and the ruler of mantua at the time, himself trained as a professional soldier, was looking to give the gonzaga rule more cultural credibility with his commissioning of andrea mantegna (who was already established as a famous painter) in a humanist renaissance political landscape in which other courts such as the ferrara were commissioning their own “painted chambers”. the room chosen to be painted is on the first floor of a northeast tower in the private section of the ducal palace, with windows on the north and east walls overlooking lago di mezzo. this room would have been used for several different private and semi-private functions such as a bed chamber for ludovico, a gathering area for family and close courtiers, and a reception room for particularly important guests. the semi-private functions of the room helped to create an air of exclusiveness to the camera degli sposi meant to impress viewer with the wealth and cultural prestige of the gonzaga without an overt or gaudy display. the room itself was renovated before mantegna began painting to be as close to a square as possible with the dimensions of roughly eight by eight meters wide and seven meters tall. original architectural features of the room include the triple vaults on each wall, a fire place on the north wall, doorways on the west and south walls, and windows on the north and east wall. painted between 1465 and 1474, the camera degli sposi became well known shortly after its completion as a masterpiece in the use of both "trompe l'oeil" and "di sotto in sù".
camera degli sposi
their implied disinterest in engaging eye contact with the viewer, has the effect of making the gonzaga court lofty in both position and intellect. ludovico would often sit in front of his portrait in the “court scene” when he had distinguished visitors, reportedly so that they would take the portrait’s non-idealized likeness to ludovico as a sign that he was trustworthy and that all the other flattering elements of the camera degli sposi, such as its aim to connect the glory of ancient rome with mantua under the gonzaga, were true.
camera degli sposi