ANGUISSOLA, SOFONISBA. - Painter, b. at Cremona in 1527, d. at Palermo in 1625. Through her first masters, B. Campi and B. Gatti, known as il Sojaro, she came into contact with the foremost artists of her time, whose form and style she reproduced, though filtered through her temperament as a meticulous observer. Her contemporaries enthusiastically celebrated her fame, which A. attained above all through her activity as a portrait painter. In 1559 she was summoned to Spain by Filippo II. Besides the numerous portraits in collections and museums in Europe and America, few sacred works remain: a Sacra Famiglia at Bergamo, a Sposalizio di s. Caterina in London, and a Pietà in Milan (Brera).
BIRL.: H. Posse, s. V. in Thieme-Becker, I, pp. 523-24; A. Venturi, Storia dell'arte italiana, IX, vi, Milan 1928, p. 922;
(photo Alinari)