01.

WFYI launches program on rediscovering and protecting art by women

Florence, Italy, is the birthplace of some of the world’s most celebrated artists, scientists, and architects—from Michelangelo and Leonardo to Brunelleschi and Galileo. Yet little is known of the women artists who once painted there. A center for female creativity for more than five centuries, Florence hosts innumerable works by significant women painters from the Renaissance onward. Though these masterful paintings rival the art of their great male contemporaries, they are often unseen by the general public. Invisible Women sheds light on these groundbreaking women artists and their virtually unknown works. It also points to the rediscovery and restoration of these works as the guiding forces behind rescuing the art of Florence’s forgotten women artists. Discover the “hidden half” of one of the world's most beloved art cities!

Have a look!

View trailer for PBS special.

02.

The making of Invisible Women: Forgotten Artists of Florence

WFYI Studios brings historic artists to life

The PBS special Invisible Women: Forgotten Artists of Florence is based on the book by the same name, by Dr. Jane Fortune (The Florentine Press, 2009). Created by WFYI Studios in Indianapolis, the program spotlights state-of-the-art restoration and discovering the lives and works of Florence’s fascinating women artists, bringing together top restoration artists, art historians and museum executives from Italy and the United States. The special showcases the painters whose works populate Florentine museums, including Artemisia Gentileschi, Suor Plautilla Nelli, Irene Parenti Duclos and Maria Hadfield Cosway. Launched on PBS in Indianapolis on November 5 and 10 (7.30 pm and 6.30 pm, respectively), Invisible Women: Forgotten Artists of Florence will be broadcast throughout the nation this fall.

For complete viewing schedule, write to invisiblewomen@theflorentine.net

“As we worked to write, shoot and edit this production, I was very much impressed by the passion of this remarkable group of women – those from the Renaissance and those from the 21st century. It is a shame that so little is known of these accomplished painters of Florence who succeeded, despite some extraordinary obstacles of the era. They followed their dreams to create incredible works of art at a time when women were afforded few opportunities in business and the arts. Their contributions to the social and cultural landscape of their eras impressed me as much as their vibrant works. It was also intriguing to watch as a dedicated group of modern ‘art detectives’ put together many hidden clues from the past to help restore these works to their original beauty. It’s an interesting mix to witness how state-of-the-art technology can be used to bring a hidden treasure back to life. The enthusiasm of these dedicated women is truly inspirational. I am very proud to have been a part of helping to tell their extraordinary story.”

Todd Gould, Producer and script writer


“As an Indiana public television station, WFYI considers creating arts-related programming one of its core missions. We also embrace the opportunity to create shows that demonstrate Indiana’s interrelationship with the rest of the world. The production of Invisible Women presented itself as an irresistible opportunity. Here, we have the chance to tell the story of remarkable women over the span of centuries: the brave and visionary women who created masterpieces in defiance of the norms of the time, as well as the dedicated women who are devoted to preserving the legacy of these great artists for future generations. Jane Fortune, is our link to these story lines. We look forward to presenting this story to our audience, and audiences around the world.”

Clayton Taylor, Vice President Production, WFYI Studios

03.

PBS special spotlights paintings by women rescued from obscurity

Italian women artists are finally getting their taste of the limelight. This exciting half-hour program focuses on historic female painters in Florence, especially those whose works have recently undergone restoration. Thanks to projects generated by the Advancing Women Artists Foundation multiple paintings from the city’s State Museum Collections have been rescued from museum storage and put on permanent display, including Artemisia Gentileschi’s David and Bathsheba and two lunettes by Renaissance artist Suor Plautilla Nelli. Florence’s Polo Museale has made noteworthy efforts in recent years to promote and sustain art by women including a noteworthy exhibition on female self-portraits in 2010.

The PBS special spotlights a special work discovered in the occasion, namely, the self-portrait of Maria Hadfield Cosway. ‘This is a truly unique painting in the Vasari Corridor,’ explains Dr. Giovanna Giusti, the exhibition’s curator and director of the Uffizi Gallery’s Nineteenth-century and Contemporary Art Departments. ‘We see her as she depicted herself, at the height of youth. In 1778, she presented this work to gain admission to the Florentine Academy of Design. Maria Hadfield Cosway’s painting is very close to our heart here at the Uffizi, because, over time, it had lost its identity, only to be rediscovered recently, two years ago, during archival research for an exhibition dedicated to self-portraits by women artists in the Uffizi Collection.

It was truly a pity that this work by a native Florentine artist of English descent, whose parents had opened an inn in Florence for Grand Tour travelers, had all but disappeared. And here, we see her today, re-discovered, re-emerging from history itself. From the dust, let’s say, of a storage facility. And the painting’s rediscovery has truly enhanced the collection as a whole.”

04.

A Word from the Experts

Documentary excerpts

The conservator works in collaboration with any number of people in determining how the painting or the artwork should look at the end of the treatment. Italian approaches tend to be somewhat different. Occasionally, they may use more neutral tones, which allows the viewer to stand back while the brain combines the individual colored strokes into a more complete continuous tone. When you get close, you can see very clearly that there was no attempt to actually imitate the missing paint. With restoration, there is no one right way. What is important is that however it’s done, it’s done in a reversible manner. So, when people change their minds fifty, seventy-five, or a hundred years from now, it will be easy to undo and use the prevailing philosophy of the time.

David Miller - Senior Conservator of Paintings, Indianapolis Museum of Art

“In the Renaissance, intellectualism and creativity were considered very male traits. The women who were written about in the Renaissance are described as marvels of nature. A work of art by a woman was considered a little bit bizarre, simply because it was made by this...woman…who was doing a very male thing, simply by being artistic.”

Jennifer Lee, Assoc. Professor of Art History - Indiana University - Purdue University at Indianapolis:


“Florence’s artistic heritage bears witness to a wealth of works left to us by great artists. Within this collection, many works belonging to women artists are still waiting to be identified. Though numerous are well-known and several have been recently rediscovered and valorized, who knows how many others are waiting to become the focal point of specific research and focused study.

Dr. Cristina Acidini, Superintendent for Historical, Artistic and Ethno-Anthropological Heritage and Florence’s Polo Museale

 

05.

The Commitment to Safeguarding Art by Women in Florence

American sponsors ban together to raise awareness

The PBS special Invisible Women: Forgotten artists of Florence was made possible thanks to the generous contributions of participants of the 2011 Florentine sojourn: