A portrait of a woman attributed to Sofonisba Anguissola

Presentation of the work

Attributed to Sofonisba Anguissola (c. 1532–1625), portrait of a woman, c. 1590–1610? Oil on canvas, 130.5 x 97.5 cm. [in storage] Château d’Aulteribe (Sermentizon)
© Centre des Monuments Nationaux.

Sometimes attributed to an anonymous^16th-century Florentine artist, this ceremonial portrait has also been linked to the work of Alonso Sánchez Coello, a Spanish court painter who died in 1588 and who exerted a considerable influence on the genre in Spain. He studied in Flanders under the famous Antonio Moro (1520–1576/78), also known as Mor, as the painter adapted his name throughout a spectacular cosmopolitan career spanning England, Germany, Italy, Portugal and Spain. This great portraitist established the rigid conventions of court portraiture in the^16th century, conventions which Alonso Sánchez Coello introduced to Spain from 1555 onwards, when he joined the court of Philip II. Every portrait painter who arrived at the Spanish court after him adopted these conventions, which were therefore originally Flemish in origin, a fact that makes attribution all the more complex.

Nevertheless, the ruff that leaves much of the neck exposed is not characteristic of Spanish fashion and does not appear in any of the master’s portraits. These portraits mainly feature small, fluted ruffs that came into fashion in the 1560s and 1570s. Here, the lace ruff reveals the neck, a fashion that emerged in the 1580s, that is, during the final decade of Coello’s career. A similar ruff – modest in size and leaving the neck bare – can be found in a portrait attributed to Sofonisba Anguisolla, now in Ukraine and dated to the late^16th century.

Moreover, several clues suggest that this is indeed a portrait of an Italian woman. In the^16th century, the invention of steel needles gave new impetus to ‘reticelli’ embroidery and lace, which came to adorn the ruff and make it even more luxurious in Europe. However, in Italy at the end of the^16th century, the ruff did not display the extravagance of English or French fashion, which adopted the wide godrons characteristic of the 1590s in the northern countries.

The costume, richly embroidered and adorned, features pagoda sleeves, that is to say, open from the elbow, revealing another sleeve close to the body, which hugs the forearm, as can be seen in a portrait of Christine of Lorraine attributed to Titian and dated 1589. However, this first Florentine portrait of Christine is thought to depict a ‘French-style’ trousseau: the sumptuousness of the velvet embroidered with gold thread motifs and the sleeves typical of the Spanish style correspond to the sartorial preferences of the French court at the time. Subsequent portraits would depict a completely different, distinctly Florentine style, one that was far more understated. We are therefore looking at a portrait of a woman dressed ‘in the French style’, which does not mean that this painting was produced in France, as fashions circulated very rapidly amongst royal courts, particularly through portraits, as depicted in the 1590s.

The pose remains solemn, but a hint of a smile is visible. The treatment of the face is quite similar to certain portraits painted by, or attributed to, Sofonisba Anguissola, such as that of Elisabeth de Valois or the famous ‘Woman in Fur’, suggesting that this portrait dates from between 1590 and 1610.

During the Renaissance, Sofonisba Anguissola was one of the few women, alongside Lavinia Fontana, to pursue a genuine artistic career. The Anguissola family belonged to the minor nobility of Cremona, a city in Lombardy in northern Italy. Between 1546 and 1549, Sofonisba and her sister Elena went to study under the Mannerist painter Bernardino Campi (1520–1591), who worked mainly in Cremona and Milan. When Campi left Cremona, the two sisters continued their training with Bernardino Gatti (c. 1495–1576). Around 1554, Sofonisba completed her artistic education in Rome, before spending time in Mantua, Parma and Milan. In Milan, she met the Duke of Alba (1507–1582), who suggested to King Philip II of Spain (1527–1598) that he invite Sofonisba to court. In 1559, she left Lombardy for Madrid and remained there until 1573. She attended the marriage of Philip II to Elisabeth of Valois (1545–1568), daughter of the King of France, and became one of her ladies-in-waiting. At the same time, she continued her work as a painter, producing portraits of the queen, the king and the princesses.

Until her patron’s death in 1568, she produced numerous portraits of members of the royal family and their close associates. However, her particular status—she was a noblewoman and lady-in-waiting—prevented her from selling these paintings or running a studio. These factors, together with the fire at the Alcázar, may explain why her work as a painter at the Spanish court was long overlooked. It is only thanks to extensive research that a large number of portraits have gradually been reattributed to her, often at the expense of the painter Alonso Sánchez Coello (1642–1693).