Lavinia Fontana, born in 1552 was a mannerist painter in the High Renaissance & Mannerism period. She was born and raised in Bologna. She painted both in the field of portraiture as well as religious and mythological paintings. Her career as a painter prospered in both Bologna and Rome.
Lavinia was trained by her father, who was a teacher at the school of Bologna.
I chose to write about her since I was impressed by how she is regarded as the first female who prevailed with the career of being an artist in western Europe and how she also made her earnings with the help of her commissions.
Her art style was very intricate. Not only were the subjects detailed but the environment surrounding them was also impressively detailed.
Some of her few paintings that caught my eye are the following:
Lavinia was also the first woman to paint nudes. Some art historians feel this is a topic of controversy. Since women were not allowed to be exposed to nudity, this makes them consider if like Sofonisba Anguissola, who was one of the first women to become an established painter in art history, Lavinia also made her family members model for her.
It is also said that her family relied on her commissions and that her husband was her agent and helped raise their 11 children.
Works cited:
Image source : https://www.wikiart.org/en/lavinia-fontana/all-works#!#filterName:all-paintings-chronologically,resultType:masonry
Factual Information: https://nmwa.org/art/artists/lavinia-fontana/