There was a time when a popular pub quiz question was “name five women artists.” Meant to stymie the players (which it often did) it also reflected the appalling lack of research about and recognition for women artists over the centuries. Fortunately, that situation has changed, thanks to countless books and museum exhibitions that have focused on the often overlooked and even misattributed work by women.
While most of these scholarly efforts have been directed toward adults, Stanford professor Emanuele Lugli decided to write a children’s book about Lavinia Fontana, an extraordinary 16th-century artist who gained not only fame but fortune during her long career. But why would a noted Renaissance scholar on the faculty of a prestigious university choose to write a book geared for 7- to 10-year-olds?
“This invisibility — the difficulty of being exposed not only to women artists but also to teaching that genuinely celebrated them — is precisely why I felt we needed a children’s book,” Lugli said.
The result of his efforts is “Lavinia’s Wondrous Portraits,” which takes early readers on a journey through Bologna, Italy, following a young girl named Camilla who is learning about such things as what is a portrait, why objects are used as symbols and how an artist works.
The story tells how Camilla’s sister is having a portrait painted by “Maestra Fontana” because she is about to be married and will move away, possibly not to be seen again. Symbols within the painting, such as a flower and a copper disc, will remind Camilla of her sister in the years ahead. The narration of this story also introduces the reader to Lavinia Fontana and explores why she was such a successful artist. Lugli explained why he took this sophisticated, multi-faceted approach.
“To understand why portraiture was so important in 16th-century Europe, you need to know how families were formed and fractured. Marriages could be violent, uprooting women and daughters and transplanting them into new families with no possibility of return,” Lugli said.
He added, “If you don’t understand the conditions women faced and the injustices they endured, it’s difficult to appreciate how extraordinary Lavinia Fontana was. She fought battles on these fronts while producing portraits that met the needs of her patrons — and of women more broadly.”
Lavinia Fontana (1552-1614) was, indeed, an exceptional figure at a time when women artists faced innumerable challenges: lack of formal training (which included the all-important access to nude models) and societal expectations of marriage and children, to name a few. Fontana managed to overcome these obstacles first by receiving training from her artist father, Prospero, and later by becoming the favored portrait artist for the wealthy families of Bologna. She was known and sought out because of her detailed and realistic renderings of elaborate clothing and jewels. It is estimated that she created over 100 portraits and religious paintings during her lifetime.
Fontana did marry and gave birth to 11 children, neither of which impeded her career. In fact, in a rare circumstance, her husband (a minor painter) gave up his career to assist her as the family’s main source of income.
In order to capture the unique character of Fontana’s paintings, Lugli chose to work with illustrator Chiara Palillo, who did not try to recreate the artist’s work in a literal way. The illustrations, done in a unique cyanotype that also incorporates faces from Fontana’s paintings, are not your usual primary color, realistic drawings found in books for this age group. (Cyanotype produces a kind of monochrome photographic print, all in shades of blue, using a chemical that reacts to ultraviolet light — often sunlight is used.)
“We thought: Why not reproduce the faces of all the characters as if lifted from Lavinia’s actual portraits, and make them blue, so readers would recognize the connection?” said Lugli. “This way, the illustrations blend Lavinia’s original details with Chiara’s own artistic additions, mirroring the text, which mixes historical facts with fictional elements.”
The resulting book is both entertaining and didactic, with lively views of Bologna, an explanation of why someone would get a portrait painted, and how unusual it was for the artist to be a woman. Included at the end of the story is a primer about the tools of the artist, biographical information about Fontana, thumbnail illustrations of her work and a listing of where her paintings can be seen today. (The Legion of Honor Museum in San Francisco owns “Portrait of Bianca degli Utili Masselli and Children,” completed in 1604). On the last page there is a short quiz about the art of portraiture.
When asked what the most difficult aspect of writing for children was, Lugli had a quick response: “The writing itself. In a children’s book, every word matters. The text is less than 1,000 words but each one carries weight.” He also acknowledged that writing for children made him consider Fontana’s paintings in a new light.
“Lavinia painted posthumous portraits in a way that made the deceased interact with family members. I thought, ‘how would a child see this?’ Suddenly, I realized — these are paintings of ghosts! I don’t think I would have been able to recognize them this way if I hadn’t been working on the children’s book.”
“Lavinia’s Wondrous Portraits” was published in March of this year and was named one of the most outstanding books of 2025 by the picture book platform dPICTUS. The book is currently sold out on Amazon but copies can be seen at the Bowes Art & Architecture Library at Stanford University. There is also a small exhibition in the library (located in the McMurtry Building) that offers an inside look at how the book was created.
Five glass cases contain books that inspired the writing of “Lavinia’s Wondrous Portraits,” materials that explain why portraits exist, examples of the cyanotype technique used by the illustrator, and watercolors that highlight how the unique architecture of Bologna made it “more than a backdrop.” The exhibition will be on view until Dec. 12.
Lugli said he has not ruled out writing another book for children and credits his Stanford colleagues for their support and encouragement. “I have wonderful colleagues who are willing to take risks and understand that the study of art history — and education in general — is about more than developing skills and earning degrees. It’s about cultivating a life worth living,” he said.
What does Lugli hope young readers will take away from the book?
“I hope children see history not as the study of the dusty old past, but as a distant planet, full of different life forms.”
“Lavinia’s Wondrous Portraits” is for sale at various online booksellers including telegraphhillbooks.com and amazon.com; the exhibition “Lavinia’s Wondrous Portraits: The Making of a Children’s Book” is on view through Dec. 12 at the McMurtry Building, Bowes Art & Architecture Library, 355 Roth Way, Stanford (non-Stanford ID holders call 650-723-3408 for building access); events.stanford.edu/event/lavinias-wondrous-portraits-the-making-of-a-childrens-book
