The Medici Archive Project (MAP) is an independent research institute whose aim is to preserve and valorize the archives of the Medici dynasty, which comprise over fifteen million documents (many of them are featured in the MIA DATABASE). MAP also serves as a major academic hub for scholars and students worldwide in the field of Italian Renaissance and early modern studies.
Beranek’s first monograph examines the creation, display and circulation of portraits of Amalia van Solms, a figure who has until recently been sidelined in studies of Dutch art, patronage and culture. Yet her image was ubiquitous and her influence far-reaching. The broader theme driving the book is an interrogation of what a portrait was, how it functioned, and how it played an active role in negotiating the physical and metaphorical spaces occupied by a female subject. Women, particularly those who functioned in more ‘masculine’-coded public spaces, both benefited from and were constrained by portraits and their cultural work in gender- and class- specific ways.
Beranek’s first monograph examines the creation, display and circulation of portraits of Amalia van Solms, a figure who has until recently been sidelined in studies of Dutch art, patronage and culture. Yet her image was ubiquitous and her influence far-reaching. The broader theme driving the book is an interrogation of what a portrait was, how it functioned, and how it played an active role in negotiating the physical and metaphorical spaces occupied by a female subject. Women, particularly those who functioned in more ‘masculine’-coded public spaces, both benefited from and were constrained by portraits and their cultural work in gender- and class- specific ways.
Individuals who join Friends of MAP share in the thrill of historical discovery thanks to special experiences reserved just for them, including the MAP Forum (our online lecture series), and a host of other features such as weekly free lessons in reading Italian documents called “Friday Lunch Letters.”
