#irene di spilimbergo

[women-and-arts]

Portrait of painter Irene di Spilimbergo, by Gian Paolo Pace.

A student of Titian, Irene (1538-1559) was an Italian Renaissance painter. Few of her works are known, I could not find any. She died aged 21.

[saintcirce]

My first thought was: how sad. What fate could be worse than to be in close proximity to genius, capable of recognizing it, but, alas, something less-than? And [she] must have been less-than, because I’d barely heard of her. How terrible, and sadly typical, that in my long pursuit of women artists I’d apparently learned nothing. Least of all, that they are all too easily lost to time, a condition rarely any reflection on their talent.

- Bridget Quinn, Broad Strokes: 15 Women Who Made Art and Made History (In That Order)

Plautilla Nelli, Suor Plautilla Nelli (1524-88)

Self Portrait, Sofonisba Anguissola (1554)

Irene di Spilimbergo, Titian and Gian Paolo Pace (c. 1560)

Self Portrait with Madrigal, Marietta Robusti (c. 1578)

Self Portrait in a Studio, Lavinia Fontana (1579)

Judith with Head of Holofernes, Fede Galizia (1596)

Self Portrait as Allegory of Painting (La Pittura), Artemisia Gentileschi (c. 1638-9)

Self Portrait as Allegory of Painting, Elisabetta Sirani (1658)

i. ii. iii. iv. v. vi. vii. viii.

[annemarieyeretzian]

Sofonisba Anguissola

Sofonisba Anguissola, an Italian Mannerist painter, is one of the first known female artists and one of the first to establish an international reputation. Sofonisba developed portraiture and painted at least twelve self-portraits at a time when it was not particularly common.

As women were not allowed to become apprentices, if they were educated in the arts, they typically came from a family where their father was a painter. The well-rounded education Sofonisba received was because it was considered proper for a noblewoman to have fine arts training.

At the age of 22, Sofonisba traveled to Rome and was introduced to Michelangelo, who recognized and encouraged her artistic talent. At the age of 27, Sofonisba was invited to Madrid and became an official court painter – one of the few female court painters.

Sofonisba's self-portraits offer evidence of what she thought her place was as a woman artist: at a time when women were seen as objects to be art and not as artists themselves, Sofonisba was talented, inventive, and playful.

Perhaps the best example Sofonisba's talent and playfulness is this self-portrait. Bernardino Campi Painting Sofonisba Anguissola provokes thought about the role of the master and the pupil, the relationship between artist and subject, and the objectification of women in art.

Sofonisba employed a special creative energy – radiographic scans of this painting have revealed that Sofonisba originally painted one of her arms to take the paintbrush from her teacher. Sofonisba was widely considered one of the best artists of her time by her creative peers.

Sofonisba would inspire other female artists (Lavinia Fontana and Irene di Spilimbergo "had set their hearts on learning how to paint" after seeing Anguissola's work) and her successes paved the way for more women to receive recognition in a competitive and patriarchal art world.

[italianartsociety]

Sofonisba Anguissola: A Humanist amongst Women

Sofonisba Anguissola (1532-1625) was the first woman to receive international renown as an artist, and inspired such others as Irene di Spilimbergo (1540-1559), Lavinia Fontana (1552-1614) and Artemisia Gentileschi (1593-1653) to follow in her footsteps. Excelling primarily as a portraitist, Sofinisba’s paintings are especially notable for their acute sensitivity to the psychological condition of her subjects – what Leonardo called the “motions of the soul” – many of which were her own likeness.

Born one of six sisters to a poor but noble family in Cremona, Sofonisba gained a humanist education uncommon for a young girl in the period. She was also sent by her father to train with renowned portraitist Bernardino Campi. Sofonisba’s humanist foundation can arguably be seen in her earliest works, such as the Self-Portrait of 1554, where she holds an open book in which is written in Latin “Sofonisba Anguissola, a virgin, made this herself in 1554”. Not only does the book identify her as a woman of letters, but the use of Latin indicates her humanist learning. She forcefully claims ownership of the painting’s execution, a matter bolstered by the self-aware gaze she presents to the viewer. Sofonisba also relates herself to female artists of antiquity such as Iaia who, as written about by Pliny the Elder, lived as a perpetua virgo not by religious devotion, but by immersing herself fully in the arts.

In her later career Sofonisba went on to gain international recognition, being invited to fulfill the role of lady in waiting and tutor to Elizabeth of Valois, queen of Spain. Her evident skill is fully realized in The Chess Game (1555), which is considered her masterpiece. Here, Sofonisba combines landscape with portraiture, genre with storia, capturing the idiosyncrasies of her sisters’ personalities with a grace and charm which captured the admiration of such artists as Michelangelo. Though Sofonisba did not receive a biography from Vasari, she did receive high praise from the well-known critic.

Reference: Charles De Tolnay, "Sofonisba Anguissola and Her Relations with Michelangelo." The Journal of the Walters Art Gallery 4 (1941): 114-19.

Self-Portrait, 1554, oil on panel, 20 x 13 cm, Kunsthistoriches Museum, Vienna.

The Chess Game, 1555, oil on canvas, 72 x 97 cm, Museum Narodowe, Poznan.

Self-Portrait, c.1556, oil on parchment, 8.3 x 6.4 cm, Museum of Fine Arts, Boston.

Self-Portrait at the Easel, c.1556, oil on canvas, 66 x 57 cm, Museum-Zamek, Lancut.

(Images: Web Gallery of Art)

Further Reading: Liana di Girolamo Cheney et al., eds., Self-portraits by Women Painters, Aldershot: Ashgate, 2000.

Sylvio-Ferino Pagden & Maria Kusche, Sofonisba Anguissola: A Renaissance Woman, Washington DC: National Museum of Women in the Arts, 1995.

Posted by: Matthew Whyte

[x00151x]

Efemérides literarias: 17 de octubre

Efemérides literarias: 17 de octubre

Nacimientos 1500: Alonso de Orozco, religioso y escritor español (f. 1591).1540: Irene di Spilimbergo, pintora y poetisa italiana (f. 1559)1720: Geneviève-Charlotte Thiroux d’Arconville, escritora y anatomista francesa (f. 1805).1792: John Bowring, político, traductor, escritor y viajero británico (f. 1872).1860: Henry Campbell Black, lingüista estadounidense (f. 1927).1864: Elinor Glyn,…

[joseandrestabarnia]

Irene di Spilimbergo, do. 1560, asistente de Tiziano, posiblemente iniciado por Gian Paolo Pace (Italiano, 1528-1560), óleo sobre lienzo, en general: 122 x 106,5 cm. Colección Widener, National Gallery of Art.

VISIÓN GENERAL

Irene di Spilimbergo tenía unos 20 años cuando comenzó esta pintura. Junto con un retrato colgante de su hermana mayor, Emilia, las dos pinturas probablemente se encargaron inicialmente en anticipación de los futuros matrimonios de las dos niñeras. En cambio, con la muerte prematura de Irene dos años después, la función de su retrato cambió repentinamente para convertirse en una elegía por lo que podría haber sido. La inscripción en la parte inferior derecha dice: "Si el destino lo hubiera permitido".

Irene y su hermana fueron educadas bajo la supervisión de su abuelo materno, el rico ciudadano veneciano Zuan Paolo da Ponte, quien alentó su interés en las artes. Irene fue notable en su ambición de sobresalir. Ella persuadió a Tiziano, un amigo de la familia que había pintado tanto a su abuelo como a su madre, para que le permitiera copiar sus obras y darle instrucciones como pintora. Pero su propia determinación aparentemente condujo al sobreesfuerzo y, por lo tanto, a la enfermedad y la muerte prematura.

En honor a la joven superdotada que había muerto a una edad tan trágicamente temprana, dos años después se publicó un volumen de casi 400 poemas en latín e italiano. El retrato de Irene parece hacer eco del tono de ese volumen. El unicornio de la izquierda se refiere a su virginidad perpetua. La corona de laurel en su mano presumiblemente alude a sus logros en las artes, y la palma de hoja perenne a su eterna fama.Irene di Spilimbergo, do. 1560, asistente de Tiziano, posiblemente iniciado por Gian Paolo Pace (Italiano, 1528-1560), óleo sobre lienzo, en general: 122 x 106,5 cm. Colección Widener, National Gallery of Art. VISIÓN GENERALIrene di Spilimbergo tenía unos 20 años cuando comenzó esta pintura. Junto con un retrato colgante de su hermana mayor, Emilia, las dos pinturas probablemente se encargaron inicialmente en anticipación de los futuros matrimonios de las dos niñeras. En cambio, con la muerte prematura de Irene dos años después, la función de su retrato cambió repentinamente para convertirse en una elegía por lo que podría haber sido. La inscripción en la parte inferior derecha dice: "Si el destino lo hubiera permitido". Irene y su hermana fueron educadas bajo la supervisión de su abuelo materno, el rico ciudadano veneciano Zuan Paolo da Ponte, quien alentó su interés en las artes. Irene fue notable en su ambición de sobresalir. Ella persuadió a Tiziano, un amigo de la familia que había pintado tanto a su abuelo como a su madre, para que le permitiera copiar sus obras y darle instrucciones como pintora. Pero su propia determinación aparentemente condujo al sobreesfuerzo y, por lo tanto, a la enfermedad y la muerte prematura. En honor a la joven superdotada que había muerto a una edad tan trágicamente temprana, dos años después se publicó un volumen de casi 400 poemas en latín e italiano. El retrato de Irene parece hacer eco del tono de ese volumen. El unicornio de la izquierda se refiere a su virginidad perpetua. La corona de laurel en su mano presumiblemente alude a sus logros en las artes, y la palma de hoja perenne a su eterna fama.

[x00151x]

Efemérides literarias: 17 de octubre

Efemérides literarias: 17 de octubre

Nacimientos 1500: Alonso de Orozco, religioso y escritor español (f. 1591).1540: Irene di Spilimbergo, pintora y poetisa italiana (f. 1559)1720: Geneviève-Charlotte Thiroux d’Arconville, escritora y anatomista francesa (f. 1805).1792: John Bowring, político, traductor, escritor y viajero británico (f. 1872).1860: Henry Campbell Black, lingüista estadounidense (f. 1927).1864: Elinor Glyn,…