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Damaged binding of Nelli's choir book, before restoration
Music and 'marketing'
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Scholars and art dealers made Nelli a student of Fra Bartolomeo. The popular nineteenth-century idea that Nelli was a student of one of the top exponents of the School of San Marco increased the marketability of her work, but in reality, Nelli and Fra' Bartolomeo were not contemporaries. Fra' Bartolomeo died in 1517, decades before Nelli's career as an artist began in the late 1550s. This newly restored choir book, dated 1558, contains the earliest known document associated with her as a painter (Florence, San Marco Museum). With manuscript production it is usually very difficult to prove authorship because decorative works and craftsmanship were considered community-building acts and not works of individual inspiration. So, as expected, this work is not signed. The idea of art as an expression of personal genius is a concept born from the Renaissance—a new, revolutionary idea from where Nelli stood. We can't help wondering if the nuns at Nelli's convent, often referred to as Santa Caterina di Carfaggio, also composed the music!