"This catalogue has been published on the occasion of the exhibition, A Tale of Two Women Painters: Sofonisba Anguissola and Lavinia Fontana, on view at the Museo Nacional del Prado in Madrid from 22 October 2019 to 2 February 2020."--Verso of title page. Includes bibliographical references and index.
Contents:
A tale of two women painters: Sofonisba Anguissola and Lavinia Fontana / Leticia Ruiz Gómez -- Sister arts / Michael Cole -- Sofonisba Anguissola at the Court of Philip II / Almudena Pérez de Tudela -- Sofonisba Anguissola in the Museo del Prado: an approach to her technique / Maite Jover de Celis, Ma. Dolores Gayo García, Laura Alba Carcelén -- Catalogue. The shaping of the myth ; Sofonisba Anguissola at the Court of Philip II ; Lavinia Fontana, portraitist of Bologna ; Religious painting ; Lavinia Fontana and mythological painting -- Sofonisba Anguissola: chronology -- Lavinia Fontana: chronology -- Bibliography
Summary:
A Tale of Two Women Painters: Sofonisba Anguissola and Lavinia Fontana' is the first book to compare the works of two pioneering women in the history of painting. These artists represent two different models of creators whose personality, recognition, and life story played a decisive role in blazing new trails for subsequent female painters to follow. They were both born in Italy, an environment that was advantageous to women's art and where there was furthermore considerable concern throughout the sixteenth century with dignifying and educating women in settings other than convents, the main centres for their cultural enrichment and artistic development since the Middle Ages. Likewise, they both received essential encouragement from their fathers, who viewed their daughters' artistic talent as a source of family livelihood. This catalogue analyses the features common to both women as well as the differences stemming from their social backgrounds. The early fame achieved by the noble-born Sofonisba Anguissola as a painter infused women's practice of the art with dignity and led to her appointment as lady-in-waiting to Queen Isabel de Valois, though her post at the Spanish court conditioned and constrained her artistic career. Back in Italy, her long, eventful life was accompanied by a recognition that has lasted until the present, earning her mythical status. Lavinia Fontana's life story is more in keeping with that of other female artists: she trained with her father, a prominent painter, who helped her become the first professional woman artist with a workshop of her own. Exhibition: Museo Nacional del Prado, Madrid, Spain (22.10.2019-02.02.2020).
This resource is supported by the Institute of Museum and Library Services under the provisions of the Library Services and Technology Act as administered by State Library of Iowa.