Open AccessWomen in Italian Renaissance Art: Representation, Societal Ideals, and Identity
Author(s) -
Eva Zhao
Publication year - 2017
Publication title -
the general brock university undergraduate journal of history
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
ISSN - 2371-8048
DOI - 10.26522/gbuujh.v2i0.1489
Subject(s) - renaissance art , the renaissance , renaissance literature , politics , identity (music) , the arts , masculinity , italian renaissance , genius , sociology , art , theme (computing) , portrait , painting , aesthetics , gender studies , literature , art history , visual arts , law , political science , operating system , computer science
A major theme regarding the life of a Renaissance woman was that of subjugation—a woman was denied all political rights and considered the legal ‘object’ of their father or their husband. However, with the Renaissance being characterized as a period of rebirth, cultural development, and intellectual growth, the area of much debate within Italian urban societies was that of women’s roles. Hence, this paper looks to discuss the representations of women in Renaissance art such as portraits and depictions of nudity: in other words, how do the ways that women were portrayed in Renaissance art help to identify features of Renaissance society? Until 1970, scholars had not assessed the representations of women, or conducted little research on women in Italian Renaissance paintings. This paper also looks to analyze the role of gender within Renaissance art, and the ways that masculinity and femininity interact; as well as the inclusion and exclusion of women from artistic genius. Similarly, this paper also hopes to answer questions on how women utilized arts as a means of participating in the Renaissance.