Artists

Portrait of Ginevra de' Benci, by Leonardo da Vinci, 1474-78, National Gallery of Art. The only Leonardo painting in America.

Flawless chalk-white skin, porcelain-fine features, and a reserved, somewhat impenetrable expression reflect the refinement of the 16-year-old Ginevra de' Benci. Like most portrait subjects of the Renaissance, she was from a wealthy family, and educated. She was also known as a poet and learned conversationalist. Young women of the time were expected to comport themselves with dignity and modesty. Virtue was prized and guarded, and a girl’s beauty was thought to be a sign of goodness. Portraitists were expected to enhance—as needed—a woman’s attractiveness according to the period's standards of beauty...https://www.nga.gov/collection/highlights/da-vinci-ginevra-de-benci.html