The landmark study of the first major woman painter of the Renaissance—now revised and expanded to include new discoveries

Since it was first published, Sofonisba’s Lesson has ushered in a major reassessment of Sofonisba Anguissola (1532–1625), a remarkable painter who changed the image of women’s education in Europe and transformed Western attitudes about who could be an artist. In this revised and expanded edition, Michael Cole reconsiders some central questions of authorship and shares the major discoveries that have been made since this influential book first came out.

The daughter of minor Lombard aristocrats who made the unprecedented decision to have her trained as a painter outside the family house, Sofonisba produced more self-portraits than any known painter before her. She was the first known artist to use her parents and siblings as primary subjects and may have painted the first group portrait featuring only women. Recent research also reveals her to have been not only a key model for painters around her but also the rare early modern Italian artist to take up a subject demonstrably related to the reform of the Catholic Church.

The expanded volume offers new assessments of paintings whose status has long been uncertain. Providing a comprehensive and up-to-date illustrated catalog of the more than two hundred known paintings and drawings that writers have associated with Sofonisba over the centuries, Sofonisba’s Lesson will remain the definitive account of the artist and her work for decades to come.

"A substantial monograph that opens at the poignant moment when Sofonisba ‘left her father’s home’ to study art."---Deborah Solomon, New York Times
"Sofonisba’s Lesson tells the story of how it was possible for a young Cremona woman to make a name for herself in the competitive man’s world of 1550s Italy and further afield in Spain . . . Having run through the biographical information intrigued and entranced, the reader will hit upon the catalog of works without even realizing it; Cole writes with a style that is both thought-provoking and relatable, his subject matter indelibly endearing."---Cindy Helms, New York Journal of Books
"Cole’s book carefully and with historical rigour suggests what a 16th-century feminist might have looked like, while offering a compelling example of feminist art history for the present day."---Alexander Marr, Apollo
"Cole makes a strong case for Sofonisba being one of the most significant artists of the 16th century."---Caroline Campbell, London Review of Books
"Sofonisba Anguissola (c1534–1625) is often identified as one of the first great Renaissance women artists, yet there has not been a scholarly monograph in English on her since Ilya Sandra Perlingieri’s Sofonisba Anguissola: The First Great Woman Artist of the Renaissance (1992). Thus, this fascinating book is a welcome addition to the literature . . . [T]his book makes a significant contribution to better understanding of Anguissola’s oeuvre. Directed toward a scholarly audience (for example, some Italian phrases go untranslated), this beautiful catalogue is an important study of a groundbreaking artist." * Choice Reviews *
"[Sofonisba’s Lesson] is well written and an enjoyable read. . . . It is recommended that this book should be in every library—college or public—that has art history in its scope. It is also of great use to courses that cover the Renaissance and its material, intellectual, and social culture."---Stephen J. Bury, ARLIS/NA Reviews
"Michael Cole’s Sofonisba’s Lesson brilliantly brings this female artist to life, exploring her art within the context of the networks and relationships that formed her world. . . . Sofonisba’s Lesson makes a significant and welcome contribution to our understanding of Sofonisba Anguissola’s life and art, and to the expanding field of studies on early modern women artists, accessible to specialists and enthusiasts alike."---Adelina Modesti, Parergon

Michael W. Cole is the Howard McP. Davis Professor of Art History at Columbia University. His books include Leonardo, Michelangelo, and the Art of the Figure; Ambitious Form: Giambologna, Ammanati, and Danti in Florence (Princeton); and A New History of Italian Renaissance Art (with Stephen J. Campbell).