Benvenuti a Arezzo! Welcome to Arezzo, affectionately known as “la terra del Piero,” a title that celebrates the deep connection between this charming Tuscan town and the renowned early Renaissance artist, Piero della Francesca. Nestled in the picturesque hills of Tuscany, Arezzo is not just a feast for the eyes but a treasure trove of...

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Image Credit: Studentessa Matta Illustration of Isabella de Medici This article was written for and published by Women Writers, Women’s Books Greetings, my dear friends. My name is Isabella de’ Medici, but many called me the Star of Florence! I was born into the powerful and wealthy Medici family. My father, Cosimo, the Grand Duke...

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Everyone’s talking about David (and now I’m chiming in too)! What is the fuss all about?Why is everyone so hot and bothered? Apparently, someone in Florida just noticed Michelangelo’s 15th-century sculpture of David doesn’t have a stitch of clothes on! They just realized — David, in fact, is stark naked! As a result, a teacher...

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The Medici family name is well known in Florence and throughout the world. The House of Medici was a banking family, a political dynasty, and later a royal house that began gaining prominence under Cosimo de’ Medici in the Republic of Florence during the late 14th century. The Medici produced four popes and two regent...

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The wisdom of Leonardo da Vinci This article first appeared on the Studentessa Matta website. Click to read in Italian. Leonardo da Vinci was an exceptional human. The epitome of the iconic Renaissance man, he was a master in various fields, including painting, sculpture, architecture, engineering, mathematics, music, and literature. He had an extraordinary ability...

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Invisible Women. Forgotten artists of Florence — the work and legacy of Jane Fortune. Florence is the birthplace of some of the world’s most famous artists, scientists, and architects. Consider some famous names like Michelangelo, Leonardo, Brunelleschi, and Galileo. But what are we missing in this litany of familiar names?  A name of a woman!...

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Today I want to talk to you about Botticelli’s Birth of Venus, and the representation of the ultimate ideal of female beauty and where Botticelli derived his inspiration. This is a small detail of Botticelli’s much larger painting, that I painted when I was a student in Florence. I attended a course in the Oltrarno...

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This post first appeared in Italian on the Studentessa Matta Blog on September 28th, 2012. You can read the article in its original Italian clicking this link I have always liked the painter Domenico Ghirlandaio, an artist of the Renaissance that worked in Florence. He was born in 1449 and died in 1494; he was...

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I got some fantastic news last week! My latest novel “The Secret Life of Sofonisba Anguissola” has wonReader Views Silver Award in the 2020-2021 Historical Fiction Category. My third novel “Eternally Artemisia” has wonReader Views Gold Award in the 2020-2021 Adult Classics Fiction Category. I’d like to thank the judges—all literary critics, who for an...

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“The Secret Life of Sofonisba—the most famous woman you’ve never heard of” is now published! I am happy to announce my fourth novel set in Italy has been published and is now available on Amazon in Print and Epub. Despite these uncertain times of Covid, writing a historical novel about Sofonisba Anguissola set in the...

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