The founder of the local school in Padua and Verona was Altichiero. He worked in Padua where he was influenced by Giotto's frescoes. The Bolognese and Lombard miniaturists also contributed to his style. In the work of his follower Stefano da Zevio the delicate beauty of the colour and the graceful linear Gothic style point to the influence of French and Rhenish miniatures and foreshadow the work of Gentile da Fabriano and Pisanello. Guariento, a Paduan, also worked in Venice.

The school of Padua became important in the 15th century under Squarcione, who, through his pupils Mantegna, Cosmè Tura and Carlo Crivelli, powerfully influenced the Ferrarese and Venetian schools.

Andrea Mantegna is strongly influenced in his early works by Donatello and classical sculpture. In 1471-74 at Mantua, as court painter to the Gonzaga he executed frescoes in the Camera degli Sposi, the ceiling being the first sotto in sù of the Renaissance.