Elisabetta sirani biography books

Elisabetta Sirani (1638–1665)—painter, printmaker, and teacher—was one of the most innovative and prolific artists of the Bolognese school. The daughter of a painter, she hailed from a city whose university was believed to have educated women since the Middle Ages and that celebrated the cult of Saint Catherine of Bologna, who was known for her skill as a painter and illuminator—ideal conditions to encourage the training and patronage of skilled women artists.

Drawing on extensive archival documentation and primary sources, including inventories, sale catalogues, and Sirani’s work diary, this book provides an overview of the brief life, fascinating oeuvre, critical fortune, and cultural legacy of this successful Baroque artist. Art historian Adelina Modesti vividly describes the society that both inhibited and supported Sirani, examining her influence on students at Bologna’s school for professional women artists as well as her significance in the professi

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Elisabetta Sirani

Adelina Modesti

This insightful volume is the first authoritative and accessible English-language book to explore the life and legacy of Elisabetta Sirani, one of the most celebrated women artists of seventeenth-century Italy.

Elisabetta Sirani (1638–1665)—painter, printmaker, and teacher—was one of the most innovative and prolific artists of the Bolognese school. The daughter of a painter, she hailed from a city whose university was believed to have had educated women since the Middle Ages and that celebrated the cult of Saint Catherine of Bologna, who was known for her skill as a painter and illuminator—ideal conditions to encourage the training and patronage of skilled women artists. 

Drawing on extensive archival documentation and primary sources, including inventories, sale catalogues, and Sirani’s work diary, this book provides an overview of the brief life, fascinating oeuvre, critical fortune, and cultural legacy of this successful Baroque artis

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Elisabetta Sirani

Italian artist (1638–1665)

Elisabetta Sirani (8 January 1638 – 28 August 1665) was an Italian Baroque painter and printmaker who died in unexplained circumstances at the age of 27.^[1] She was one of the first women artists in early modern Bologna, who established an academy for other women artists.^[2]

Life

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Elisabetta Sirani was born in Bologna on 8 January 1638, the first of four children of Margherita and Giovanni Andrea Sirani. Giovanni was an art merchant and painter of the School of Bologna, having been a favorite pupil of Guido Reni. He did not produce many works during his lifetime; instead, he took over Reni's job as a teacher, and became the master in the first life school held in the house of Ettore Ghislieri.

Sirani first trained as a painter in her father's studio.^[3] There is evidence that Giovanni was not inclined at first to have his daughter as a pupil, but she picked up his technique nonetheless and be