Marchesa Geronima Spinola c. 1624

Anthony van Dyck painted this portrait of Marchesa Geronima Spinola while working in Genoa in the 1620s. The portrait shows how images were critical to the operations of power in the city at that time. Van Dyck's Marchesa is depicted in severe black clothing, a fashionable colour achieved through expensive dyes, signifying her family’s wealth. Her clothing is not simply a representation of a person, but is also a representation of status, class, and power. Although seemingly traditional, the portrait speaks to a specific moment in the Genoese Republic's history. Genoa was governed by powerful families who competed for prestige, and portraits were valuable status symbols. This portrait would have been displayed in a family palazzo to impress visitors and assert dominance. The social history of a portrait like this takes us beyond the life of the sitter. The historian investigates the artist’s training, the patronage system, and the networks of exchange that enabled the creation and circulation of images. Ultimately, the meaning of art emerges from its specific social and institutional context.