Women, Art, And Architecture in Northern Italy, 1520?580: Negotiating Power

McIver (art history, U. of Alabama) takes a new path in this interdisciplinary approach to material culture by exploring the decoration of the domestic interior. She investigates the household records of women for clues as to how they got and spent their money on household items and linens, jewelry, fabrics and devotional objects. The result is a picture of how much economic and social power was wielded by women in secular life. The patronage of these women for items in domestic use mattered a great deal to the economy and social consideration, and although they may not have bought palaces and monumental structures, these women influenced or controlled more money, and therefore more power, than has been assumed. The illustrations, including the color plates, give readers a good idea of who controlled what in the household, and therefore who was really in power. Annotation c2006 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)

Katherine A. McIver is Associate Professor of Art History at The University of Alabama at Birmingham, USA. She is also the editor of Art and Music in the Early Modern Period: Essays in Honor of Franca Trinchieri Camiz (Ashgate, 2003).