#timarete

"There have been some female painters also. Timarete, the daughter of Micon, painted a Diana at Ephesus, one of the very oldest panel-paintings known. Irene, daughter and pupil of the artist Cratinus, painted a figure of a girl, now at Eleusis, a Calypso, an Aged Man, the juggler Theodorus, and Alcisthenes the dancer. Aristarete, daughter and pupil of Nearchus, painted an Æsculapius. Iaia of Cyzicus, who always remained single, painted at Rome, in the youth of M. Varro, both with the brush, and with the graver, upon ivory, her subjects being female portraits mostly. At Naples, there is a large picture by her, the portrait of an Old Woman; as also a portrait of herself, taken by the aid of a mirror. There was no painter superior to her for expedition; while at the same time her artistic skill was such, that her works sold at much higher prices than those of the most celebrated portrait-painters of her day, Sopolis namely, and Dionysius, with whose pictures our galleries are filled. One Olympias painted also, but nothing is known relative to her, except that she had Autobulus for a pupil."

Some of the characters from Elodie Harper’s trilogy The Wolf Den.

“She was an ancient Greek painter. She was the daughter of the painter Micon the Younger of Athens. According to Pliny the Elder, she "scorned the duties of women and practised her father's art." At the time of Archelaus I of Macedon she was best known for a panel painting of the goddess Diana that was kept at Ephesus, a city that the goddess. While it is no longer extant, it was kept at Ephesus for many years.”

So, searching the names of those mentioned in the book. I found this:

“Timarete was a female artist in Athens. Much of the information we know about her came from Pliny the Elder (AD 23 – August 25, AD 79), who wrote furiously about all of the knowledge of his time. We know that Timarete was the daughter of Micon, who was also a painter. Her painting of Artemis was preserved at Ephesus for a very long time, but did not survive for us to be able to see its beauty today. Pliny actually says that she,"scorned the duties of women and practiced her father's art." (Pliny the Elder Naturalis historiaxxxv.35.59, 40.147)

Iaia was another fascinating female artist who was extremely multi-talented. Working in Rome, Iaia was quite famous and the daughter of Marcus Terentius Varro. We know, thanks to Pliny the Elder, that she worked with fine paint brushes and also "worked with ivory using graving tools." Her paintings were said to be more beautiful than her male counterparts. She was very successful and also made more money than her counterparts. She was also famous for never getting married and it is said that she remained a virgin all of her life. (Pliny the Elder, Natural History, 35.40,147.L)”

Source: 

http://voices.yahoo.com/female-artists-grecian-times-6072074.html?cat=37

Aparently one can read more here: http://books.google.de/books?ei=7Tj3S7uYBZSmNrjQhIQI&ct=result&id=QxsMAAAAIAAJ&dq=Aristarete&pg=PR65&lpg=PR65&sig=ACfU3U0LjsZSJvjip8h697P87rhiq4ukTQ&q=Iaia#search_anchor

Iaia of Kyzikos, according to the book I am reading (Women, Art and Society by Whitney Chadwick), was known for her portraits of women and also for the speed at which she painted.

It's interesting that it was considered important that she remained a virgin all her life, I mean, instead of telling us more details about her style, what other things she painted, what was her philosophy or what inspired her, Pliny decided to note that instead.

I'm grateful he wrote about them at all but it's a pity he didn't mention more about them. Now, Timarete... do I notice something rebellious about her? Maybe she was, or maybe Pliny thought she was if he said she "scorned the duties of women" but maybe she only wanted to be an artist.