Women in Italian Renaissance Art: Representation, Societal Ideals, and Identity

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