Self-portrait

Self-portrait

A self-portrait of Sofonisba Anguissola

This self-portrait of Sofonisba Anguissola depicts the artist seated at a keyboard and accompanied by an older maidservant. Anguissola wears a dark brown, somewhat unembellished gown with a small frilled collar and cuffs. She sits very tall and poised, facing and making eye contact with the viewer, and her face and hands are the brightest points in the image. The maidservant is more dimly lit but still appears very close to the foreground, as if sitting directly beside Anguissola. The figures are set against a nondescript background whose color gradation accentuates the focus to the right of the image, where Anguissola sits.

Several physical and background elements of this portrait are almost identical to Fontana's "Self-portrait at the Clavichord." The primary female figure dominates the foreground as she sits at her instrument, and a female servant supports her as a background character. The artist supports both a female ideal of beauty and the skill needed to properly express that beauty in the art of painting.

The most striking difference between the two self-portraits is the overall presentation of the woman in her space. Fontana's portrait sets her in her chambers, well-dressed and inviting interest with the details of her surroundings. She is visibly well-off and is willing to assert her place as both female nobility and artist. The background of Anguissola's portrait is bare, apart from color variation, and Anguissola herself is dressed more plainly and in more neutral colors. These contrasting elements may be a result of the intended audience for each portrait; Anguissola's place as a courtier likely influenced the poised but not exuberant portrayal of herself, as compared to Fontana's bright, warm, context-laden likeness.

Sofonisba Anguissola (1532-1625)

McIver, Katherine A. “Lavinia Fontana’s ‘Self-Portrait Making Music.’” Woman’s Art Journal 19, no. 1 (1998): 3–8. https://doi.org/10.2307/1358647.

This source draws several comparisons between Fontana’s Self-Portrait Making Music and Sofonisba Anguissola’s portrait of similar name and subject matter. Both indicate a gentildonna appropriately well-versed in the arts--both painting and musicianship--actively using their artistic talents while accompanied by a maidservant. Several distinctions, including the subject’s clothing, the setting surrounding the figures, and the color scheme of the painting as a whole, contrast Fontana’s and Anguissola’s work and give insight into the purpose and context for which the portraits were created.

Sofonisba Anguissola (Italian painter, ca. 1532-1625 ). creation: 1561. Self-portrait. painting, paintings. https://library.artstor.org/asset/AMCADIG_10312186652.

Created 1561

Eliza Henne

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Oil on canvas, 83 x 65 cm

Painting

Minneapolis College of Art and Design Collection, Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA.