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Sforza family. The Sforzas were an Italian Renaissance family that ruled Milan for almost a century. The family was originally named Attendolo. The founder of the dynasty, Muzio Attendolo, changed his family name to Sforza, meaning “force.”. The Attendoli were prosperous farmers of the region called Romagna in north-central Italy (near ...
Brief Life History of Lucia da Torsano Mistress. Lucia da Torsano, Mistress of Muzio was born in 1370, in Morciano di Romagna, Forlì, Emilia-Romagna, Italy. She had at least 3 sons and 1 daughter with Conte Giacomo Muzio Attendolo Giacomuzzo Sforza. She died in 1461, in Milano, Milan, Lombardy, Italy, at the age of 91. Photos and Memories (0)
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Jul 14, 2007 · Lapide per Elisa Sforza, figlia di Francesco Sforza, sposata a Battista Visconti, morta sedicenne nel 1471. Foto di Giovanni Dall'Orto , 14/7/2007. English: Cathedral in Milan , Italy.
An Italian family that rose to prominence in the 15th and 16th centuries. Muzio Attendolo (1369–1424) was one of the most powerful condottieri of the period (his assumed name Sforza means “force”). His illegitimate son Francesco (1401–66) was also a successful condottiere, whose armies were involved in a three-way war with the Milanese ...
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We live in a culture that is so saturated with images, it may be difficult to imagine a time when only the wealthiest people had their likeness captured. The wealthy merchants of renaissance Florence could commission a portrait, but even they would likely only have a single portrait painted during their lifetime. A portrait was about more than like...
The Mona Lisa was originally this type of portrait, but over time its meaning has shifted and it has become an icon of the Renaissance—perhaps the most recognized painting in the world. The Mona Lisa is a likely a portrait of the wife of a Florentine merchant. For some reason however, the portrait was never delivered to its patron, and Leonardo kept it with him when he went to work for Francis I, the King of France.
The Mona Lisa's mysterious smile has inspired many writers, singers, and painters. Here's a passage about the Mona Lisa, written by the Victorian-era (19th-century) writer Walter Pater:
"We all know the face and hands of the figure, set in its marble chair, in that circle of fantastic rocks, as in some faint light under sea. Perhaps of all ancient pictures time has chilled it least. The presence that thus rose so strangely beside the waters, is expressive of what in the ways of a thousand years men had come to desire. Hers is the head upon which all 'the ends of the world are come,' and the eyelids are a little weary. It is a beauty wrought out from within upon the flesh, the deposit, little cell by cell, of strange thoughts and fantastic reveries and exquisite passions. Set it for a moment beside one of those white Greek goddesses or beautiful women of antiquity, and how would they be troubled by this beauty, into which the soul with all its maladies has passed!"
Piero della Francesca's Portrait of Battista Sforza is typical of portraits during the Early Renaissance (before Leonardo); figures were often painted in strict profile, and cut off at the bust. Often the figure was posed in front of a birds-eye view of a landscape.
With Leonardo's portrait, the face is nearly frontal, the shoulders are turned three-quarters toward the viewer, and the hands are included in the image.
Leonardo uses his characteristic sfumato—a smokey haziness—to soften outlines and create an atmospheric effect around the figure. When a figure is in profile, we have no real sense of who she is, and there is no sense of engagement. With the face turned toward us, however, we get a sense of the personality of the sitter.
An important copy of the Mona Lisa was recently discovered in the collection of the Prado in Madrid. The background had been painted over, but when the painting was cleaned, scientific analysis revealed that the copy was likely painted by another artist who sat beside Leonardo and copied his work, brush-stroke by brush-stroke. The copy gives us an idea of what the Mona Lisa might look like if layers of yellowed varnish were removed.
Additional resources
Read a Reframing Art History chapter that discusses Leonardo da Vinci—"Art in Sovereign States of the Italian Renaissance, c. 1400–1600."
Theresa Flanigan, "Mona Lisa’s Smile: Interpreting Emotion in Renaissance Female Portraits," Studies in Iconography, vol. 40 (2019), pp. 183–230.
This painting at the Louvre.
Louvre Feature: A Closer Look at the Mona Lisa.
Nov 21, 2022 · Elisa means "God is a promise." It is a diminutive of Elisabeth, a form of Elizabeth, which traces back to the Greek name Elisabet, and further back to Hebrew name Elisheva. Elisheva is derived from the roots "el," meaning "God" and "shava," meaning "promise." Origin: Elisa is a Spanish and Italian name with ancient Hebrew origins, meaning "God ...
Media in category "Elisa Sforza" This category contains only the following file. 3408 - Milano, Duomo - Deambulatorio - Lapide Elisa Sforza + 1471 - Foto Giovanni Dall'Orto - 14-July-2007.jpg 2,048 × 1,360; 1.65 MB
