Avtoportretni motiv umetnice s knjigo v roki

Abstract

This article considers the book as an important emancipatory motif, expressing the tendency of women self-portrait painters to present themselves as educated and accomplished, and to establish their own subjectivity. In traditional self-portraits, since the Renaissance some female artists have presented themselves as autonomous active individuals depicted painting, reading, or playing a musical instrument. In the past, the motif of the reader has symbolized female erudition, education, and sophistication. In a time when women could only rarely attend school, the use of this motif represented an important and liberating gesture. In a period when artists preferred to portray women as nude seducers rather than as learned ladies, it was all the more important that some female artists endeavored to stress the role of women as readers. Although images of women authors with a book in their hands represented a symbol of learning and wisdom, this same motif could also be used to replace a female author’s signature. This is examined here with reference to the works of the Renaissance painter Sofonisba Anguissola.