Where Are the Women?

 The Renaissance was a revolutionary period for art. Dozens of amazing artists took chances, broke rules, and defied all the odds to pave the way for the artists that came behind. I have to admit, I’m inspired by Renaissance art history. Though I’m not much of an artist myself, my dad is a graphic designer and Michelangelo is his hero. On our trip to Italy as a family, we tracked down loads of his sculptures as Dad heralded us with stories of his life. I love stories where people rise up and make their voices heard.

However, the last time I wandered through the familiar story of that time, with all its triumphs, something began to bother me. Where were the women? They had to have been there. I assume they were, otherwise the population of Italy wouldn’t have lasted for long. Being a woman myself, I felt a particular desire to know about them, so I did a cursory search on the internet and found one. One.

Her name was Properzia de Rossi, and she was a fighter. Unlike other women who managed to become artists in her time, de Rossi was not born into a family of artists. She found her way to the discipline herself and even managed to study under one of the greatest painting masters of the time. But that wasn’t what de Rossi wanted to do. She wanted to sculpt in marble which was a huge no-no for women in that time. One artist named Vasari even commented (directly about de Rossi) that “Sculpting is not an art form that women should attempt”.

De Rossi didn’t care. She pursued her art form and beat many male competitors in a competition to decorate a sanctuary. Her contribution is pictured below. Despite her triumphs, the prejudice of her time prevailed and she died at the age of 40, penniless and practically forgotten.

de Rossi’s voice rings quietly through the ages, speaking of a life lived in her passion, of caution thrown to the wind. A life of breaking rules and following the spirit of the Renaissance revolution, the voices of which eventually ruined her.