In Genoa she devotedly pursued her art and won new honors, while she was not forgotten in Madrid. Presents were sent her on her second marriage, and later the Infanta Clara Eugenia and other Spaniards of exalted rank visited her in Genoa. Her palace became a centre of attraction to Genoese artists and men of letters, while many strangers of note sought her acquaintance. She contributed largely to the restoration of art and literature to the importance that had been accorded them in the most brilliant days of Genoese power.
We have not space to recount all the honors conferred on Sofonisba, both as a woman and an artist. She lived to an extreme old age, and, although she lost her sight, her intellect was undimmed by time or blindness. Vandyck, who was frequently her guest, more than once declared that he "was more benefited by the counsels of the blind Sofonisba than by all his studies of the masters of his art!" From a pupil of Rubens this was praise indeed!
The chief characteristics of Sofonisba's painting were grace and spirit. Her portrait of herself when at her best is in possession of the Lomellini. A second is the splendid picture at Althorpe, in which she is represented as playing the harpsichord. One can scarcely imagine a place in which a portrait would be more severely tested than in the gallery of the Earl of Spencer, beside portraits of lovely women and famous men, painted by master artists. Yet this work of Sofonisba's is praised by discerning critics and connoisseurs. Of the other portraits of herself, that in the Uffizi is signed by her as "of Cremona," which suggests that it was painted before she went to Spain. That in the Vienna Gallery is dated 1551, and inscribed Sophonisba Anguissola. Virgo. Sc. Ipsam Fecit. Still another, in which a man stands beside her, is in the Sienna Gallery. He holds a brush in his hand, and is probably one of her masters.
Her portrait of her sisters playing chess, while an old duenna looks on, was in the collection of Lucien Bonaparte and is said to be now in a private gallery in England. Her religious pictures are rare; a "Marriage of St. Catherine" is in the gallery at Wilton House.
She painted several pictures of three of her sisters on one canvas; one is in the National Museum of Berlin, and a second, formerly in the Leuchtenberg Gallery, is in the Hermitage at Petersburg. A small Holy Family, signed and dated 1559, belonged to the art critic and author, Morelli.
One regrets that so remarkable a woman left no record of her unusual experiences. How valuable would be the story of Don Carlos from so disinterested a person. How interesting had she told us of the bal masqué, given by Isabella in the fashion of her own country, when Philip condescended to open the ball with the Queen; or of the sylvan fêtes at Aranjuez, and of the gardens made under the direction of Isabella. Of all this she has told us nothing. We glean the story of her life from the works of various authors, while her fame rests securely on her superiority in the art to which she was devoted.
Ancher, Anna Kristine. Genre painter, won high praise at Berlin in 1900 for two pictures: "Tischgebet," which was masterly in its smoothness and depth of expression, and "Eine blinde Frau in ihrer Stube," in which the full sunlight streaming through the open window produced an affecting contrast. She was born at Skagen, 1859, the daughter of Erik Brondum, and early showed her artistic tendencies. Michael Ancher (whom she married in 1880) noticed and encouraged her talent, which was first displayed in small crayons treating pathetic or humorous subjects. From 1875-78 she studied with Khyn, and later more or less under the direction of her husband. She has painted exclusively small pictures, dealing with simple and natural things, and each picture, as a rule, contains but a single figure. She believes that a dilapidated Skagen hovel may meet every demand of beauty. "Maageplukkerne"—"Gull plucking"—exhibited in 1883, has been called one of the most sympathetic and unaffected pieces of genre painting ever produced by a Danish artist.
An "Old Woman of Skagen," "A Mother and Child," and "Coffee is Ready" were among the most attractive of her pictures of homely, familiar Danish life. The last represents an old fisher, who has fallen asleep on the bench by the stove, and a young woman is waking him with the above announcement.
"A Funeral Scene" is in the Copenhagen Gallery. The coffin is hung with green wreaths; the walls of the room are red; the people stand around with a serious air. The whole story is told in a simple, homely way.
In the "History of Modern Painters" we read: "All her pictures are softly tender and full of fresh light. But the execution is downright and virile. It is only in little touches, in fine and delicate traits of observation which would probably have escaped a man, that these paintings are recognized as the work of a feminine artist."