A Game of Intuition: Homage to Sofonisba Anguissola

Image shown above: "The Chess Game: Homage to Sofonisba Anguissola" Oil on canvas, 30 x 40 in

This painting is part of my ongoing Homage Series, a body of work that reimagines and honors historical women artists who defied the boundaries of their time. Each homage is a conversation across centuries—a way for me to stand beside these remarkable women and reflect on how their courage continues to shape my own path. Sofonisba Anguissola’s The Chess Game has always fascinated me, not only for its charm and intimacy but also for what it reveals about intellect, creativity, and the subtle power of women in art.

MY FATHER'S CHESSBOARD

My love of chess began when I was a little girl playing with my father. He owned nearly a dozen chessboards, each with its own story. His own passion for the game began in his childhood in Cuba, where chess was almost a national pastime. The world champion from 1921 to 1927, José Raúl Capablanca—considered a Cuban national hero—was even honored by President Batista with an oversized chess piece placed upon his grave. My father is named Raúl, and perhaps, in some poetic way, that connection linked me to the game.

In 1950, María Teresa Mora became the first Latin American Woman International Master (WIM), dominating Cuban women’s chess and winning every national championship from 1938 to 1960. Knowing this history makes me feel that my love of chess runs deeper than nostalgia—it’s cultural, even ancestral.

MEETING SOFONISBA ANGUISSOLA

When I first saw Sofonisba Anguissola’s The Chess Game, I fell in love. I knew instantly that one day, I would create a homage painting inspired by it. My version would depict me playing chess with my father—a gesture of love and legacy. The cast of characters grew to include my mother, Sofonisba herself, my Uncle Reinaldo, and even a beloved family dog.

Sofonisba’s painting contains an intriguing flaw: the chessboard is positioned incorrectly. The black square is on the right, when according to chess rules, it should be white. I reflected deeply on this. Perhaps Sofonisba was symbolically playing on a flawed landscape. She is also showing women playing chess (three of her sisters modeled for this work), which was typically considered a masculine game in that era. As a woman in the 16th century, she faced immense challenges in a male-dominated art world, yet she triumphed. She became a court painter and a celebrated portraitist at a time when few women could. Her “flawed” chessboard feels like a quiet metaphor—an artist navigating an imperfect world and still mastering the game.

THE ARTIST WITHIN THE GAME

For me, chess has always been a metaphor for life itself—requiring foresight, strategy, patience, and courage. My homage painting reminds me of those lessons. The landscape in my painting is fictional, composed of architectural elements from museums around the world. It represents the establishment, the art world itself. And there I am, playing the game.

Image shown above: "The Chess Game" by Sofonisba Anguissola, 1555, collection of National Museum in Poland

Image shown: Me and "The Chess Game" by Sofonisba Anguissola at "The Ladies of Baroque" in 2018 at The Museum of Fine Arts, Ghent

EVERY MOVE IS A STORY

Artistically, creating the composition was like playing chess: balancing the moves, counter-moves, and players on both sides of the table to achieve harmony. In both art and life, the game continues.

Through this painting, I wanted to merge personal memory with art history—to bring my family, my heritage, and Sofonisba’s spirit together in one composition. It is a reminder that every move, whether on a chessboard or in life, is an act of intention. Like Sofonisba, I continue to play on a shifting landscape, striving to balance strategy and intuition, precision and heart. In the end, perhaps the true victory lies not in winning the game, but in playing it with love, imagination, and grace.