
Suor Plautilla Nelli (1523-1588) was born into a noble Florentine family. She entered the convent of Santa Caterina di Siena in Florence (which taught painting and sculpting of terracotta figures) in 1538, at the age of 14, and eventually became its prioress, several times. The convent, founded by Camilla Bartolini Rucellai in 1496, was ‘run’ by the friars of San Marco, the most famous friar being Savonarola. The convent (now destroyed), located in Piazza San Marco, was supposedly annexed into the Galleria dell’Accademia in 1853 and was briefly part of the Accademia delle Belle Arti. In her time she was widely praised and received many important commissions, but today, only four of her paintings have been authenticated. The Lamentation with Saints in the Refectory of San Marco Museum is her most famous public work, which expresses a rare raw emotional grief of Christ’s death, depicted through the red eyes and visible tears of the figures. Her Last Supper...