Sofonisba Anguissola (c. 1535-1625) began painting as a young girl in Cremona, Northern Italy in the 1540s. She was influenced equally by both grand mannerists and realistic portraitists current in Lombardy during the mid-sixteenth century. Sofonisba’s work continues that of Leonardo, Michelangelo, and Titian earlier in the century and is contemporaneous with the portraiture of Lorenzo Lotto and Giovan Battista Moroni. At the end of 1559, Sofonisba was summoned to the royal court in Madrid and imported her Lombard style into the heart of an empire. Sofonisba painted well into the seventeenth century. Discover her story with Lady in Ermine ISBN 978-0-86698-821-6.
A selection of Sofonisba’s work in chronological order:
Lady In Ermine: The Story of A Woman Who Painted The Renaissance 