The Maid herself stands in shadows, her body bisected by both darkness and Anguissola. She carries an almost spirit-like presence as she blends into the background. It can feel unbalanced, how dark (or how contrasted) the painting suddenly gets when looking at the Maid in the background. The startling color change and contrast contribute to the seemingly unbalanced nature of Anguisola’s work.
Something is not quite right and begs the viewer to do a closer examination. When focusing on the Maid, what is perhaps the most interesting aspect of Anguissola’s portrait, is her eye-line: she is looking directly at the viewer.
Typically, young women of 16th century Italy were accompanied by maids who acted like governess, ensuring the chastity of the young female children and keeping them in check. They can serve as protection or as a barrier between the children and the dangerous outside the domestic sphere. (1) At first glance, it may appear as if Anguissola’s Maid is here to watch and govern her, however, the Maid is not watching Anguissola, she is watching the viewer. That is who she does not trust. Her look plus the guided eye-line is enough to subvert the “default” gaze by repositioning who is actually holding the power. Anguissola’s is overcompensating of her femininity for the sake of the male gaze or to appear alongside (or to almost blend into) the “default,” a concept conceived in 1971 by art historian, Linda Nochlin. The default is defined as “male viewpoint, unconsciously accepted as the viewpoint of the art historian”. (2)(1) Rafaella Sarti, “Who are Servants? Define Domestic Service in Western Europe (16th-21st Centuries)”, in S. Pasleau and I. Schopp (eds.), Proceeds of the “Servant Project”, Liège: Éditions de l’Université de Liège. 2006, 22.
(2) Linda Nochlin, Why Have There Been No Great Women Artists?. New York: ARTnews. 1971, 1.
