The Lady Anatomist: The Life and Work of Anna Morandi Manzolini [Hardcover]

Anna Morandi Manzolini (1714-74), a woman artist and scientist, surmounted meager origins and limited formal education to become one of the most acclaimed anatomical sculptors of the Enlightenment.The Lady Anatomisttells the story of her arresting life and times, in light of the intertwined histories of science, gender, and art that complicated her rise to fame in the eighteenth century.

Examining the details of Morandi’s remarkable life, Rebecca Messbarger traces her intellectual trajectory from provincial artist to internationally renowned anatomical wax modeler for the University of Bologna’s famous medical school. Placing Morandi’s work within its cultural and historical context, as well as in line with the Italian tradition of anatomical studies and design, Messbarger uncovers the messages contained within Morandi’s wax inscriptions, part complex theories of the body and part poetry. Widely appealing to those with an interest in the tangled histories of art and the body, and including lavish, full-color reproductions of Morandi’s work,The Lady Anatomistis a sophisticated biography of a true visionary.

Rebecca Messbargeris associate professor in romance languages at Washington University in St. Louis and the coeditor and cotranslator ofThe Contest for Knowledge: Debates over Women’s Learning in Eighteenth-Century Italy,also published by the University of Chicago Press.