Lavinia Fontana
(1552 - 1614)

Lavinia Fontana was a Bolognese Mannerist painter active in Bologna and Rome. She is best known for her successful portraiture, but also worked in the genres of mythology and religious painting. She was trained by her father Prospero Fontana who was a teacher at the School of Bologna. She is regarded as the first female career artist in Western Europe as she relied on commissions for her income. Her family relied on her career as a painter, and her husband served as her agent and raised their 11 children. She was perhaps the first female artist to paint female nudes, but this is a topic of controversy among art historians.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lavinia_Fontana

Portrait of a Lady with a Dog
Between 1552 and 1614
Oil on Panel
97 x 72 cm
Auckland Art Gallery
https://www.aucklandartgallery.com/explore-art-and-ideas/artwork/9702