Plock, Phillippa (2008) Watching women watching warriors : Nicolas Poussin's 'Tancred and Erminia' and the visuality of papal court tournaments. Art History, Volume 31 (Number 2). pp. 139-158. doi:10.1111/j.1467-8365.2008.00603.x

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Abstract

Nicolas Poussin's Tancred and Erminia centres on a woman's gaze. In its reference to noblewomen watching jousting knights, a motif present in the source poem, I argue that the format of the painting drew on ritualized practices of viewing. Contemporary depictions of a tournament reveal the specificities of this visuality for Poussin's patrons. In its replication of the classed and gendered spectatorship of papal court jousts, Tancred and Erminia was able to encourage aspiring papal courtiers to empathize with a coveted viewpoint gendered feminine. In so doing, I believe it offered viewers the possibility to identify with a standpoint, a cultural position of viewing constituted through representation.

Item Type:	Journal Article
Subjects:	N Fine Arts > ND Painting
Divisions:	Faculty of Arts > History
Library of Congress Subject Headings (LCSH):	Poussin, Nicolas, 1594?-1665 -- Criticism and interpretation, Knights and knighthood in art, Gaze in art, Women in art
Journal or Publication Title:	Art History
Publisher:	Wiley-Blackwell Publishing Ltd.
ISSN:	0141-6790
Official Date:	April 2008
Dates:	Date Event April 2008 Published
Volume:	Volume 31
Number:	Number 2
Number of Pages:	21
Page Range:	pp. 139-158
DOI:	10.1111/j.1467-8365.2008.00603.x
Status:	Peer Reviewed
Publication Status:	Published
Access rights to Published version:	Restricted or Subscription Access
Funder:	Arts & Humanities Research Council (Great Britain) (AHRC), British Academy (BA)

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