Lorenzo Lotto's 'Portrait of a Woman inspired by Lucretia' is a curious painting. We don’t know for certain who the woman is, but we have incredible insight into her character.
Painted around 1530-3, the woman in this portrait stands boldly, holding our gaze in a way unusual to portraits of women in the 16th century. She holds a drawing of the Roman heroine Lucretia, whose story is one of sexual violence and suicide.
The setting is simple yet filled with intricate detail. The sitter is confident and richly dressed. Her hand gestures towards the paper, inscribed with a Lucretia's final words. The painting has had many names over the centuries as our understanding of it has changed.
While we still may not know exactly who the sitter is, her perspective seems clear: she would follow in Lucretia’s tragic footsteps. In this short film, learn more about the story of Lucretia, and the woman inspired by her, with art historian Melissa Baksh.
