Lost Artist of Florence

The untold biography of Plautilla Nelli, Florence's first-known female Renaissance artist. A captivating journey into the life and legacy of Plautilla Nelli (1524–1588), The Lost Artist of Florence shines new light on the tale of this trailblazing nun-artist. Writer and journalist Joanna Moorhead takes us to Florence, the Renaissance’s cradle city, where Nelli was confined to a monastery by her parents aged just fourteen. Despite regulations against women joining guilds or formally studying anatomy Nelli's talent flourished, and she went on to become the city’s first-known woman artist. A pioneering figure, Nelli was praised by the likes of Giorgio Vasari but faded into obscurity until the restoration of two of her paintings in 2019, rediscovered after almost five centuries of neglect. Drawing on years of meticulous research and personal connections to convent life, Moorhead recounts the detective-like quest to track down Nelli’s forgotten works and revive her artistic legacy. Painting a vivid picture of her own, she delves into the counter-cultural existence of convent life and explores how Nelli defied the constraints of her time to create ambitious, monumental masterpieces that rivalled those of her male contemporaries. From her early years in a Dominican convent to her groundbreaking achievements as a self-taught artist, Nelli’s journey is one of immense innovation, community, loss and rediscovery.