Painting with Confidence: Early Female Self-Portraiture
Posted: July 15, 2015
Category: Sofonisba Anguissola
Self-portraits convey more than just appearances—they affirm an artist’s identity. In the 16th and 17th centuries, women artists made portraits of themselves in their studios. Self-portraiture helped legitimize women as...
![Painting of a trio of smiling musicians. On the left, a man wears a large black hat and plays the violin. On the right sits a man in orange wearing a feathered hat and playing the mandolin. In the center sits a woman dressed in black, opening her mouth in song.](https://nmwa.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/2001.146-GAP_506-aspect-ratio-2.25-1-700x330.jpg)
Impress your friends with five fast facts about Italian artist Sofonisba Anguissola, whose work is currently on view at NMWA in Picturing Mary.
![Three quarter length painting of a woman standing against a dark background. She is wearing a sumptuous red Renaissance-style dress with a high lace collar. Standing next to her at bottom left is a child holding a small spaniel.](https://nmwa.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/2001.134-aspect-ratio-2.25-1-700x330.jpg)