Exhibitions    Vertus des Vices

16.09.16 to 16.10.16

Virtues of Vice is a series of eighty intricately detailed oil paintings of Renaissance Venetian cortigiana oneste, the ‘honest’ courtesans of 16th-century Venice. Each picture is encased in a glossy black frame suggestive of a small window into another world. Arranged on the gallery wall in the shape of a giant gondola, the paintings invite viewers to take an intriguing journey through this unique history of Venetian life.


The series was inspired by the artist’s residency at La Scuola Internazional di Grafica Venice in 2010. There, she discovered images of Veronica Franco, a poetess & famous Venetian courtesan, who, along with her contemporaries, sat for the famous painters Titian, Tiepolo and Bourdin. Unlike some courtesans of the time, the oneste were highly educated and achieved considerable literary and artistic accomplishments. They were radical figures with an unusual degree of creative, sexual and financial freedom. 

 

Barmby explains, “These Venetian Courtesans were acknowledged as powerful celebrities of their world, and my work attempts to explore this in relation to contemporary ideas of the feminine, fame, performativity and status.”

 

Barmby’s reprisal of courtesans as sensuous, mysterious and glamourous women in command of their lives is sustained across this body of work. Each painting offers intimate details of a woman’s body, clothing, jewelry, hair, facial expression, or immediate environment. The courtesans pictured may be revived from a 15th century Venetian history but they deeply resonate with a modern female sensibility, characterized by a desire for freedom, intellect and joie de vivre.

New World by Lisa Barmby

New World  2016

Oil on board

20 x 20 cm

Donna Onesta by Lisa Barmby

Donna Onesta  2016

Oil on board

13x10.5cm

Honorata con Mandalino by Lisa Barmby

Honorata con Mandalino  2016

Oil on board

20 x 13cm

La Fuina delle Fornase by Lisa Barmby

La Fuina delle Fornase  2016

Oil on board

10.6 x 7.9cm

Fiorina El Felze by Lisa Barmby

Fiorina El Felze  2016

oil on board

5.5 x 4.5 cm

Zanetta Buranella by Lisa Barmby

Zanetta Buranella  2016

Oil on board

18 x 13cm

Veronica by Lisa Barmby

Veronica  2016

Oil on board

24 x 18cm

Rosetta el Felze by Lisa Barmby

Rosetta el Felze  2016

Oil on board

15.5 x 12 cm

Punta della Notte by Lisa Barmby

Punta della Notte  2016

Oil on board

15.5 x 11.8 cm

Petal by Lisa Barmby

Petal  2016

Oil on board

18 x 13cm

Ottavianella by Lisa Barmby

Ottavianella  2016

Oil on board

15 x 12 cm

Night Rose by Lisa Barmby

Night Rose  2016

Oil on board

20 x 13 cm

Marietta Vespa by Lisa Barmby

Marietta Vespa  2016

Oil on board

20 x 13 cm

La Festina en Gondole by Lisa Barmby

La Festina en Gondole  2016

Oil on board

15 x 12.5cm

Laureta Picola by Lisa Barmby

Laureta Picola  2016

Oil on board

13 x 10.3 cm

Ponte Gulie by Lisa Barmby

Ponte Gulie  2016

Oil on linen

29.5 x 20 cm

Madonna Honorate by Lisa Barmby

Madonna Honorate  2016

Oil on board

15.5x11cm

Donna Onesta by Lisa Barmby

Donna Onesta  2016

Oil on board

13x10.5cm

Larva di Nobile by Lisa Barmby

Larva di Nobile  2016

Oil on board

15 x 10cm.jpg

La Castiglione bel Occhio by Lisa Barmby

La Castiglione bel Occhio  2016

Oil on linen

17.8 x 13.8cm

La Moretta by Lisa Barmby

La Moretta  2016

Oil on board

22.5x12.8cm

Imperia L'Illuminata by Lisa Barmby

Imperia L'Illuminata  2016

Oil on board

24x18cm

Cavallo Nobile by Lisa Barmby

Cavallo Nobile  2016

Oil on board

15 x 10 cm.jpg

Diamante by Lisa Barmby

Diamante  2016

Oil on linen

9 x 6.5cm

Blue Moon by Lisa Barmby

Blue Moon  2016

Oil on board

18x13cm

Amicitia e Scudi by Lisa Barmby

Amicitia e Scudi  2016

Oil on board

25.4 x 20.3 cm

Carnivale Cat by Lisa Barmby

Carnivale Cat  2016

Oil on linen

9.5 x 7 cm

Chopines Poca Terra by Lisa Barmby

Chopines Poca Terra  2016

Oil on board

17 x 14.3 cm

Fiorina el Felze by Lisa Barmby

Fiorina el Felze  2016

Oil on board

15 x 12.5cm

Giulia Gondola Rosa by Lisa Barmby

Giulia Gondola Rosa  2016

Oil on board

15.2 x 12 cm

Il Cielo Venexiano by Lisa Barmby

Il Cielo Venexiano  2016

Oil on board

20 x 13 cm.jpg

La Castiglione (2) by Lisa Barmby

La Castiglione (2)  2016

Oil on board

20 x 15.3cm

Lucietta de la Corte Nova by Lisa Barmby

Lucietta de la Corte Nova  2016

Oil on board

24 x 18cm

Paolina la Principal by Lisa Barmby

Paolina la Principal  2016

Oil on board

30 x 20 cm

Betta Fachinetta e Sua Sorella by Lisa Barmby

Betta Fachinetta e Sua Sorella  2016

Oil on linen on board

6.8 x 9.5cm

Samaratina by Lisa Barmby

Samaratina  2016

Oil on board

14.5 x 17.5cm

Peggy’s Pet by Lisa Barmby

Peggy’s Pet  2016

Oil on board

7.8 x 9.4 cm

Notte Venexiana by Lisa Barmby

Notte Venexiana  2016

Oil on board

14.2 x 18.5 cm

Lauretta la Luna by Lisa Barmby

Lauretta la Luna  2016

Oil on board

10.6 x 12.8 cm

Elisabetta Contessa by Lisa Barmby

Elisabetta Contessa  2016

Oil on board

13.3 x 20 cm

Isabella Casa Vecchia by Lisa Barmby

Isabella Casa Vecchia  2016

Oil on board

11 x 15.5 cm

Marina Libera by Lisa Barmby

Marina Libera  2016

Oil on linen

17.5 x 23.7 cm

Madalena la Meretrice by Lisa Barmby

Madalena la Meretrice  2016

Oil on linen

7 x 9.5cm

Chopines di Tulia Balina by Lisa Barmby

Chopines di Tulia Balina  2016

Oil on board

12 x 15.5cm

Chiara Francese by Lisa Barmby

Chiara Francese  2016

Oil on board

13.2 x 20 cm

Gatto Nobile by Lisa Barmby

Gatto Nobile  2016

Oil on board

10.5 x 12.8 cm

Blue Ebb by Lisa Barmby

Blue Ebb  2016

Oil on board

10.3 x 18.1cm

E Viva! by Lisa Barmby

E Viva!  2016

Oil on linen

8.3 x 10 cm

Larva e Tricorn by Lisa Barmby

Larva e Tricorn  2016

Oil on board

15.5 x 25.4 cm.JPG

Violante di Rio de la Sensa by Lisa Barmby

Violante di Rio de la Sensa  2016

Oil on board

18 x 16 cm

Bauta by Lisa Barmby

Bauta  2016

Oil on linen

7 x 7cm

Lugretia Favreta by Lisa Barmby

Lugretia Favreta  2016

Oil on board

13.7 x 15 cm

Ciel en Rose by Lisa Barmby

Ciel en Rose  2016

Oil on linen

20 x 17.5cm

La Biondina by Lisa Barmby

La Biondina  2016

Oil on board

15x17cm

Cavallo Galante by Lisa Barmby

Cavallo Galante  2016

Oil on board

20 x 20cm

Amabalia Veronese by Lisa Barmby

Amabalia Veronese  2016

Oil on Board

7.5 x 18 cm

Elena da Canal by Lisa Barmby

Elena da Canal  2016

Oil on Board

7.5 x 17.5 cm

Aquilina Veronese by Lisa Barmby

Aquilina Veronese  2016

Oil on board

7.5 x 18 cm

Cornelietta by Lisa Barmby

Cornelietta  2016

Oil on Board

7.5 x 17.5 cm.JPG

Felicita by Lisa Barmby

Felicita  2016

Oil on Board

7.5 x 18 cm

Lucieta Bizara by Lisa Barmby

Lucieta Bizara  2016

Oil on board

7.5 x 18 cm

Blue Poles by Lisa Barmby

Blue Poles  2016

Oil on board

27 x 14.4cm

In Cielo Venexiano by Lisa Barmby

In Cielo Venexiano  2016

Oil on linen

40.6 x 9.8 cm

Gentildonna by Lisa Barmby

Gentildonna  2016

Oil on board

24x18cm

Chiaretta di Ca D'oro by Lisa Barmby

Chiaretta di Ca D'oro  2016

Oil on board

20 x 15cm

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