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Period: 476 to 1450
The Middle Ages
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1142
Hildegard of Bingen
Hildegard was a German Benedictine nun born in 1098 who experienced visions. She wrote books, painted, and composed songs based on these visions. In 1147, she founded a monastery in Bingen and died on September 17, 1179. This artwork is a Romanesque-style self-portrait of Hildegard receiving a vision and sketching it on a wax tablet with the help of a monk named Volmar. It falls into the miniature art genre. The portrait highlights the potential for women in this era to become spiritual leaders. -
1150
Guda
Guda was a nun and illuminator from Germany. Known for her work on the manuscript The Homiliary of Saint Bartholomew, she is one of the first women in Europe to create a signed self-portrait. The message translates to “Guda, a sinful woman, wrote and illuminated this book.” Scribes rarely signed their works during this time, leading to assumptions that monks were the primary writers of books throughout the Middle Ages, but recent research has found that many nameless scribes were women. -
Period: 1425 to
Renaissance
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1517
"Mona Lisa"
The Mona Lisa was painted by the famous Italian artist Leonardo da Vinci. It is believed that he started working on it in 1503 and continued until 1517, when he left it unfinished. The painting is a portrait of Lisa del Giocondo, which was created using oil paint to create the appearance of movement and texture. Some of the landscape is blurred to create an out-of-focus effect, while the woman is painted with sharp lines. Realism is represented with lifelike colors and complex details. -
1552
Catharina van Hemessen
Catharina van Hemessen was a Flemish Renaissance painter who learned the craft from her father. She is recognized as the first northern female painter to sign and date her work. Since she was able to break away from traditional norms of religious depictions during this era, her artwork represents her artistic freedom as a painter by focusing on small-scale portraits of the wealthy, such as the man in this portrait. He wears gold rings, holds a gold sword, and has gold embellishments on his suit. -
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17th Century
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Artemisia Gentileschi
Artemisia Gentileschi, born in Rome in 1593, practiced painting in her father’s workshop. At 17, she was raped and then tortured at trial. She painted a non-traditional version of Susanna and the Elders in 1610, her earliest known work. The woman is in visible distress, trying to escape the sexual assault of the elders. Sexual violence is a recurring theme in her art. It is likely this painting helped her cope with her traumatic experience. She wanted to depict the justice Susanna received. -
Elisabetta Sirani
Elisabetta Sirani, born in 1638 in Bologna, Italy, became an independent painter at 19. She died in 1665, believing to be poisoned by her maidservant. This piece has rich tones of crimson red and emerald green. Portia's gold dress, sash, and boots depict her as a woman of wealth and power. This painting is often debated. The feminist perspective depicts a strong-willed woman. To others, it represents subordination that sends a message of submission rather than feminism by sexualizing Portia. -
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The 18th Century
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The 19th Century
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The 20th Century (Europe)
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The 20th Century (America)
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Late 20th Century/21st Century