However, the main source that documents Madonna Enthroned specifically is artist Lorenzo Ghiberti's autobiography, I Commentarii (1447).

This method of decoration, based on a style called Cosmatesque or Cosmati, was popular in Rome since the Early Christian period and in Tuscany in the Late Middle Ages.

The influence of Cimabue, traditionally recognized as Giotto's teacher (based on Giorgio Vasari's 16th century Lives of the Most Excellent Painters, Sculptors, and Architects), is shown first in the very symmetrical composition of the piece.

[4] Lastly, Giotto took cues from many contemporary sculptors, including Nicola and Giovanni Pisano, whose work shares influences of Northern Gothic art.

Giotto was one of the first artists to capitalize on the potentialities of the practice of convincing three-dimensional space in paintings and reliefs.

Giotto used a value scale, a distinct range of light and dark, to create a sense of volume in his figures, giving them the slight smokiness that is usually characteristic of Leonardo da Vinci and later Renaissance artists.

Unlike in other paintings by Giotto, the light source in Ognissanti Madonna is located on the right side of the piece as opposed to the left.

The meaning behind this is not known for sure, although a few logical reasons for this could be the Ognissanti Madonna's placement within the church or Giotto's use of exaggeration with lighting.