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- Sofonisba Anguissola
Sofonisba Anguissola
Portraitist of the Renaissance
Van 11 februari tot en met 11 juni 2023 organiseerde Rijksmuseum Twenthe in samenwerking met de Deense Nivaagaards Malerisamling de eerste solotentoonstelling rond het leven en werk van de Italiaanse renaissanceschilder Sofonisba Anguissola (ca. 1532–1625) in Nederland. Anguissola is een van de meest getalenteerde portretkunstenaars van de Italiaanse zestiende eeuw. Door slimme carrièrestappen speelt ze in op de wens van de adel zich te vereeuwigen en geraakt ze aan het einde van de zestiende eeuw tot in de binnenste cirkels van het Spaanse koningshuis.
‘The most illustrious female painter in Europe’
Sofonisba Anguissola was one of the most successful artists of the Renaissance, widely praised by her contemporaries for her talent and creativity. Giorgio Vasari, the renowned Italian artist biographer, wrote in his Le vite de’ più eccellenti pittori, scultori e architettori (1568) that the figures in Anguissola’s portraits appeared so lifelike, they seemed to breathe. Such praise was rarely extended to women at the time, and was typically reserved for male predecessors and peers such as Jan van Eyck or Leonardo da Vinci.
Michelangelo Buonarroti also praised Anguissola in a letter exchange with her father, Amilcare Anguissola – specifically for her ability to capture sorrow in her drawings. Vasari remarked that nothing more beautiful or lifelike existed than the figures in that particular drawing.
Anguissola continued to be admired well into her later life. The Flemish painter Anthony van Dyck visited her in Sicily, documenting their meeting in his diary and including a sketch of her. According to Italian writer Filippo Baldinucci, Van Dyck claimed he had learned more about painting from his conversations with Anguissola than from anyone else.
Even after her death, admiration for Anguissola remained strong. In 1674, the historian Raffaele Soprani described her as la più illustre Pittrice d’Europa – the most illustrious female painter in Europe.
Self-Portrait – Family Portrait – Royal Portrait
The exhibition at Rijksmuseum Twenthe follows the life and career of Sofonisba Anguissola through three key chapters: her youth and training in Cremona, her years as a lady-in-waiting at the Spanish court in Madrid, and her later life in Sicily and Genoa. These locations shape the structure of the exhibition, which traces her artistic development – from early family portraits to the contemplative religious works created in her final years.
The exhibition also offers insights into everyday life in 16th-century Italy and Spain, with historical context provided through literature, musical instruments and other period artefacts.
In her own time, Anguissola was described as a marvel. With this exhibition, Rijksmuseum Twenthe reveals how she became a celebrated and sought-after artist in a society that imposed strict limitations on women of her status. Featuring more than half of her surviving oeuvre, the exhibition highlights her innovative approach and her rise to prominence as one of the most renowned portraitists of the Italian Renaissance.
Publication
A richly illustrated publication, Sofonisba Anguissola. Portraitist of the Renaissance, will be published by Waanders Uitgeverij to accompany the exhibition. With essays by scholars including Griselda Pollock and Leticia Ruiz Gómez, the book explores Anguissola’s life, career and artistic development, as well as the shaping of her image as a female artist.
