North Carolina Museum of Art

Seated before fruits and flowers, the raw material that her skill transforms into art, the skill and reputation of this female painter is trumpeted by the figure of Fame who appears overhead. At the same time, a cherub crowns her with a laurel wreath, symbol of victory. Attributes of the liberal arts rest on the table beside her, while in the background stands a statue of Minerva, the mythological patroness of the arts. The identity of the painter is unknown, and even the recent discovery of the flower still life sitting on the easel has done little to solve this mystery. Interestingly, The Netherlands, unlike most of Europe in the seventeenth century, could boast of a number of successful and innovative female artists.