Saint Nicholas of Bari, John the Baptist and Philip

Rocco Marconi painted Saints Nicholas, John the Baptist, and Philip around 1507 in Venice. Marconi was a follower of Giovanni Bellini and Palma Vecchio who maintained the Venetian tradition of warm, atmospheric devotional painting. His altarpieces served churches in Venice and the Veneto. The tempera-on-panel medium required a carefully gessoed surface and was painted in fine, precise layers, yielding a luminous, jewel-like surface of great durability.

Oil on panel with rich Venetian coloring and atmospheric unity. The three saints are rendered with the dignified composure and warm tonality characteristic of the Bellini school tradition.