Arcadópolis
Self-Portrait with a Book
Sofonisba Anguissola, 1554
What you see
Sofonisba appears half-length, turned sideways but with her face toward us. She looks at us steadily, serious and calm. Her hair is parted in the middle and gathered in braids, and she wears a dark dress with a high white lace collar. At the lower left, she holds a small book open toward the viewer.
The plain olive-green background sets off her pale skin and coppery hair. The paint is smooth and careful, with hardly a brushstroke showing. A fine web of cracks covers the surface. Watch for the red edges of the pages, the handwritten letters, and the lace at her cuff.
About Sofonisba Anguissola
Sofonisba Anguissola was born in Cremona into a noble family whose father wanted all six of his daughters to study art and letters, something very rare at the time. She painted her sisters playing, laughing and posing, and made so many self-portraits that her face was one of the best known of her age. She was painter and lady-in-waiting at the court of Philip II in Madrid and lived past ninety; in her old age the young Anthony van Dyck visited her in Palermo and drew her.
More by Sofonisba Anguissola
The Chess Game
Self-Portrait at the Easel
Miniature Self-Portrait
Portrait of Her Father Amilcare with Minerva and Asdrubale
Boy Bitten by a Crayfish
Portrait of Minerva Anguissola
Portrait of the Marquess Massimiliano Stampa
Elisabeth of Valois Holding a Portrait of Philip II
Philip II
Self-Portrait
Juana of Austria with a Young Girl
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