Elizabeth Korb Essay 4 23 November 2007 An analysis of Elisabetta Sirani: her works, her life, and her place as a role model. The Italian Renaissance, as art historians traditionally understand it, did not occur for women as it did for men. Women have historically been denied access to the art simply because of gender (Niceley 6). However, in the city of Bologna the cultural climate was ripe for the prosperity of female artists. One such artist was Elisabetta Sirani. Working on a great many levels, in a great many mediums, Sirani’s works are many in number. While her contributions to Bologna as both a creator and teacher and the larger art world were not fully recognized until her death, she unknowingly became a female role model for other female artists. She became the voice in which they could speak and express themselves in a predominately male occupation. If not for Malvasia, a renowned patron of the art and director of the academia del Nudo, Elisabetta Sirani would not have been encouraged to paint. While her father’s book collection and eventual strained encouragement allowed Sirani to create freely, she was certainly an artist in her own right. She quickly surpassed her father’s talent, which not only he but the rest of the public acknowledged. When he tried on multiple occasions to pass off her work as his own, she grew accustomed to working in public (Greer 216). Working in public only increased the demand for her work. However, unlike most painters, Elisabetta Sirani seemed to have filled every commissioned offered her (Greer 218). Every commission meant more money for the family. Soon, what once had been considered woman’s play had turned into a profitable business her father had capitalized on. Sirani was his money making machine. While he may have been exploiting her talent, this exploitation allowed Sirani the freedom to create portraits, stories, and images in a medium she loved. Women in Italy did not traditionally specialize in the historical paintings of religious, historical, and literary subjects (Bohn 58). They more often painted portraitures. Portraitures were considered far suitable for females, as such creations considered little creativity and imagination. However, Sirani not only passionately painted historical scenes, she is also considered the first woman in Bologna to have done so (Bohn 58). Her ability to paint outside tradition directly relates to her father’s library of religious and secular texts. Unlike many of her female peers, she had access to the outlines of Biblical history, the stories of Greece and Rome, a general idea of heathen mythology, and an acquaintance with the legends of the saints (Ragg 239). Sirani spent a great deal of time sketching and painting the Virgin and child. In recent years, scholars have now proffered that some forty-two percent of her paintings were comprised of religious subjects followed by another fifteen per cent of her picture portraying allegories and subjects from classical history and mythology (Bohn 60). Both of these percentages confirm Sirani was above all a historical painter. As alluded to above, Sirani created a massive amount of paintings for a variety of reasons. While she compiled a list of nearly 200 of her own paintings, this list is certainly not comprehensive (Bohn 59). Even art historians admit her immense activity is evidence there are many more original Sirani’s yet to be discovered. Elisabetta Sirani not only wanted to create for herself but also to teach other women how to paint. Around the year 1656, between her immense creation and success as her own creator, she opened a school (Ragg 242). The school was open to any woman, not just those from artistic background, who wanted to learn how to paint. She encouraged her pupils to think large, to challenge themselves, and to take on public projects. For example, she emboldened Ginevra Cantofoli to undertake works of a larger scale – something quite uncommon for female artists (Greer 220). Scholars often ask why women’s artwork tends to be much smaller in output, format, and presentation than men’s. As with most questions, there is no irrefutable answer. However, the answer may be simply women needed encouragement to pursue a field stereotypically male. Cantofoli certainly needed encouragement from Sirani, a better-known female artist, to pursue something unknown. Certainly in Bologna during the 16th and 17th centuries, women such as Elisabetta Sirani were just beginning to slowly be encouraged to become public artists who displayed larger works of art. Private paintings, watercolors, and sketches tended to be smaller in scale and perhaps equated with a female hand, kept quietly in the home for personal viewings. While some smaller paintings and sketches were considered beautiful, finished pieces patrons often wanted larger, more colorful pieces. Indeed, to be considered a female painter of note, one had to produce for the public. However, the interplay between smaller more frequent creations and the larger more notable creations of female artists is important in understanding the process of creation and often overlooked genius of the female artist. Sirani was notorious for conceiving whole subjects and scenes, quickly sketching or brushing them on parchment (Ragg 293). While it was the larger colorful works patrons wanted, it is these rough sketches and compositions that reveal her true rank as a painter and confirm she was, in her own right, a brilliant painter. As one scholar says it is in these rough sketches “undistracted by color and ornament we measure [her] naked strength and weakness” (Ragg 294). An example of this it drawing number two, Head of the Virgin http://www.chch.ox.ac.uk/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=558&Itemid=583 , currently on display in the Fantastically Real Christ Church Picture Gallery exhibit. While it is unconfirmed, this sketch is very similar to Sirani’s Madonna and Child Image not found online, but it can be found on page 223 of Greer’s Obstacle Race book.; it might have been used as the preliminary sketch for the larger piece. Both this sketch in the exhibit and the later finished painting include a halo of stars around the halo of the Virgin. Perhaps she used sketch as inspiration. Sirani could have also been inspired for her Madonna and Child by Reni’s St. Mary Magdeline http://www.nationalgalleryimages.co.uk/Imagedetails.aspx?q=Religious+%26+Biblical&mode=Subjects&start=2&num=12&ng=NG177&title=Saint%20Mary%20Magdalene&artist=Guido%20RENI&frm=1 , currently on display at the National Gallery in London. In this portrait, similar to Sirani’s sketch, the saint is surrounded by a halo of lighted stars while gazing toward heaven. The plaque to the left of the portrait also suggested her placement close to the picture plane enhances her relationship to the viewer; Sirani’s sketch also places the Virgin close to the viewer. It is uncertain whether Sirani would have seen this exact portrait by Reni. However, all the literature on Sirani acknowledges she was heavily influenced, if only indirectly by his softer style and classical mannerisms. Another example where Sirani’s rough sketches reveal her strengths and limitations is in the Charity http://www.ashmolean.org/php/makepage.php?&db=wadrawings&view=llisti&all=&arti=sirani&titl=charity&mat=&prov=&sour=&coll=&acno=&strt=1&what=Search&cpos=1&s1=artist&s2=mainid&s3=&dno=25 in the Ashmolean Museum’s Print Room Collection. Done in watercolor, and brushed in dark brown ink over black chalk, is a preliminary of her Portrait of Anna Maria Ranuzzi as Charity http://images.google.co.uk/imgres?imgurl=http://www-english.tamu.edu/pers/fac/phillippy/_women_artists/sirani/img/charity.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www-english.tamu.edu/pers/fac/phillippy/_women_artists/sirani/&h=578&w=450&sz=55&hl=en&start=2&um=1&tbnid=lGmyiR9trnGW_M:&tbnh=134&tbnw=104&prev=/images%3Fq%3DSirani%2BPortrait%2Bof%2BAnna%2BMaria%2BRanuzzi%2Bas%2BCharity%26svnum%3D10%26um%3D1%26hl%3Den%26client%3Dfirefox-a%26rls%3Dorg.mozilla:en-US:official%26sa%3DN . In this tiny preliminary painting, Sirani appears to be capturing the domesticity and traditional role of the female of the portrait. There are deep variations in the brown ink, which suggest to the viewer a reflective concentration as Sirani is creating for the first time what will become a painting of a wealthy woman and her three children. Today, art historians understand Portrait of Anna Maria Ranuzzi as Charity as an unexpected example of Bolognese portraiture in the second half of the seventeenth century (Chadwick 100). The concentrated brushwork brings lively touches of red and blue to the canvas. She also illuminated the drab, but necessary grey color with touches of lilacs and browns (Chadwick 100). Just as the preliminary watercolor in the Ashmolean suggests, the purpose of the painting is not to highlight Ranuzzi’s rank, but instead to call attention to her maternity. Sirani’s choice to accentuate the latter suggests she wanted explore motherhood, not simply because she was a woman and it was expected female artists painted maternity, but feasibly because she herself never was a mother. As seen above, while Sirani was quick to create small sketches and watercolors as preliminary works and even gifts for friends, she also was not hesitant to create larger paintings in public spaces. In 1657 she was invited to contribute to a monumental painting for the new Certosa of Bologna. She quickly sketched a scene in the life of Christ, which was to adorn the life of Christ. However, some within the congregation considered her composition to be too ambitious and therefore planned by her father (Greer 218). Yet, the sketch she did in her characteristic brush and wash technique served as proof she was indeed the creator of the scene. In less than the time allotted her scene of Christ and St. John, the Holy Ghost, and God the Father in Glory adorned the nave (Greer 218). The controversy surrounding this painting confirms while women were making significant inroads into art, they were far from considered artistic equals. Women like Sirani were creating pieces large and small. However, critics assumed such creations were flukes and the majority of female artiste could only create pieces of small to average size. In contrast, it was the male hand and brush stroke that effortlessly could only create grandiose works of both size and content. Ironically, though, by this time Sirani had far surpassed her father in skill and celebrity by the times of the Certosa commission. She had proved herself artistically, but because she was female she was still considered to be of lesser artistic ability and therefore automatically still rendered unable to quickly create such masterpieces. Artemisia Gentileschi also challenged notions of what female artists should and could paint. She was the only other female artist to rival Sirani in Italy (Chadwick 105). Both Gentileschi and Sirani were daughters of painters and were followers of famous Renaissance male painters. However, Sirani offers an interesting contrast to Gentileschi, particularly in her version of the Judith and Holofernes http://images.google.co.uk/imgres?imgurl=http://www.giovanetto.com/burghley/sirani285.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.giovanetto.com/burghley/sirani.html&h=365&w=286&sz=37&hl=en&start=1&um=1&tbnid=ZsjP816fkIpmLM:&tbnh=121&tbnw=95&prev=/images%3Fq%3DElisabetta%2BSirani%2BJudith%2Band%2BHolofernes%2B%26svnum%3D10%26um%3D1%26hl%3Den%26client%3Dfirefox-a%26rls%3Dorg.mozilla:en-US:official%26sa%3DG subject (Parker 26). Unlike Gentileschi’s Judith Slaying Holofernes http://www.artemisia-gentileschi.com/judith1.html , Sirani chooses “cooler colours and [a] more mannered composition” (Parker 26). Also, Sirani’s Judith is cool and detached whereas Gentileschi’s is decisive and involved (Parkers 26). Sirani’s Judith may be more closely linked to Guido’s sense of beauty and serenity, as it is well known she was his indirect pupil (Ragg 290). Perhaps in this painting she desired to remain closer to the elegance of traditional Bolognese painting. Gentileschi’s interpretation of Judith and Holofernes evokes the moment of action. Instead of drawing the spectator in through the depiction of female beauty, she encourages an audience by the “tense pose of the main protagonist” (Parker 26). The difference in painting theme might suggest one artist is willing to go further outside her rank as a female artist than the other. Such a comparison also contradicts the idea that female artists share qualities simply because they share the same sex. Essentially, because these two artists interpret this scene differently confirms no essential femininity exists in the realm of artistry (Parker 26). If there is no essential femininity in art, then a woman’s interpretation of events and stories is suddenly widened. She no longer is the weaker sex in the art world as men have predetermined her to be because while she may choose to depict an individual’s virtues, she just as easily can depict vices. Sirani’s Portia Wounding her Thigh http://images.google.co.uk/imgres?imgurl=http://www.topofart.com/images/artists/Elisabetta_Sirani/paintings/sirani001.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.topofart.com/artists/Elisabetta_Sirani/art_reproduction/3223/Portia_Wounding_Her_Thigh.php&h=325&w=463&sz=42&hl=en&start=1&um=1&tbnid=jDjkc_voZK_2DM:&tbnh=90&tbnw=128&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dsirani%2Bportia%2Bwounding%2Bher%2Bthigh%26svnum%3D10%26um%3D1%26hl%3Den%26client%3Dfirefox-a%26rls%3Dorg.mozilla:en-US:official%26sa%3DN is a small detour from her more traditional Bolognese paintings. This painting is in exploration for Sirani on the theme of heroic women attempting, and then succeeding, not by the virtue of men, but by their own virtue (Chadwick 100). The commissioner was Signore Simon Tassi, and the piece was meant to hang in his private apartment above the door. Therefore, it is no surprise that while she was exploring the heroic virtue of Portia, he had to bear in mind her patron by including more traditional imagery of the sexualized woman. While the exposed thigh, loosened robe, and knife posed in ambiguity give her picture “overtones of perverse titillation and sado-masochistic sexuality,” it surprisingly rests in the iconographic modes of her period. The female figure confirms the sexual ideology of the time. However, what makes this painting unusual is that a woman painted it. Therefore, while some view this work as a feminist piece, created by a strong-willed woman, it is indeed very much within the sexual ideology of the era (Parker 27). Sirani may have overstepped her bounds as a female ever so slightly, but she did not only within the Reni mode of representation but also to satisfy a patron. Therefore, she remains a product of the era, not liberated by the heroic Portia, but confined by the overt sexuality she had to convey to please all parties involved. Just as Sirani was gaining notoriety, her life was cut surprisingly short. At the young age of 26 she died because of poisoning, which some believe was the result of jealousy of her talent and success (Niceley 7). The memorial service held in her honor was an extraordinary affair in which every “Accademico Bolognese” had made his contribution (Greer 222). Sirani’s young death both inspired and deprived her pupils and the city of Bologna. The development of religious painting would become “stagey, hollow, pietistic, and a product of dissociated sensibility” (Greer 224). Further, while women certainly continued to work without Sirani, they no longer could rely on special treatment that was once extended to Sirani and her followers (Greer 224). It seems then that only in her absence was the true influence of Elisabetta Sirani was truly felt. Elisabetta Sirani may not have known she was a role model during her short career as an artist in Bologna. Certainly, critics of the time, such as Boccaccio, asserted that such “famous women were miraculously endowed with qualities that enabled them to succeed and thus could not serve as models for ordinary women” (Chadwick 87). However, Sirani’s pious life as an artist and teacher might contradict Boccaccio’s assertion. Sirani was a female prodigy in her own right. She executed hundreds of historical paintings, as well as portraitures, which reflect both the beauty and limitations of her life. While at times her compositions fail to replicate the brilliance of her master Guido Reni, at others her creations reveal an effortless harmony of brush to canvas (Greer 221). Some of her pieces, namely Portia Wounding her Thigh, nearly break from the traditional boundaries women were required to paint within. Then again, a great many of her pieces exhibit picturesque conditions of both Bolognese tradition as well as domestic service (Ragg 7). She created to give herself a voice slightly outside the traditional Renaissance female. While she was careful to paint within her rank, the fact that she painted at all, and with such valor, gives her a louder voice in which other female artists heard. However, Sirani’s patrons and her female pupils were not the only individuals that heard her and recognized her as an influential Renaissance artist – Bologna acknowledged her influence at her citywide funeral. Linda Nochlin may be correct in suggesting there are indeed no equivalents for Michelangelo or Rembrandt Picasso or Matisse (Nochlin 150). However, Elisabetta Sirani is an interesting example of excellent, but unfortunately insufficiently investigated artists of the Renaissance. She allowed herself to be a role model to the women in Bologna by opening a studio for their own learning and growth. She continues to be a role model for other women artists because she refused to remain in the traditions of portraiture by exploring the traditionally male domain of historical painting. Art is not free. It is certainly influenced by previous artists and undoubtedly by social forces (Nochlin 158). Elisabetta Sirani may not be as influential as Giotto was at the outset of the Italian Renaissance. However, she did produce ideals artists, namely female artists can emulate. Bibliography Bohn, Babette. "The Antique Heroines of Elisabetta Sirani." Renaissance Studies 16 (2002). Chadwick, Whitney. Women, Art, and Society. 3rd ed. London: Thames & Hudson, 2002. Greer, Germaine. The Obstacle Race. London: Tauris Parke Paperbacks, 2001. Niceley, H T. "A Door Ajar: the Professional Position of Women Artists." Art Education 45 (1992): 6-13. Nochlin, Linda. "Why Have There Been No Great Women Artists?" Women, Art and Power and Other Essays. London: Thames & Hudson, 1988. Parker, Rozsika, and Griselda Pollock. Old Mistresses: Women, Art and Ideology. London: Harper Collins, 1981. Ragg, Laura M. The Women Artists of Bologna. London: Metheun & Company, 1907.