The exhibition catalogue Showing Their True Colours: Female Figures in Medieval Miniatures in Glagolitic Manuscripts (Croatian: Premazane svim mastima: ženski likovi na srednjovjekovnim sitnoslikama u glagoljskim rukopisima) is edited by full professor Sanja CVETNIĆ, PhD (University of Zagreb, Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences), collaborator on the FEMIGLA project.
The catalogue is published by FF Press (Zagreb, 2025).
Summary
The exhibition Showing Their True Colours: Female Figures in Mediaeval Miniatures in Glagolitic Manuscripts and the accompanying catalogue are the result of the curiosity, dedication, and research efforts of students from the Department of Art History at the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, University of Zagreb.
Their initiative has been supported by the research project Women and the feminine in mediaeval and early modern Glagolitic culture, conducted at the Old Church Slavonic Institute in Zagreb, and supported by the Croatian Science Foundation.
The catalogue contributors – Tonka Belamarić (Saints Pudentiana and Petronilla), Nikolina Colnago (Saint Helena of the Cross), Nikola Kantoci (The Old Testament (Chaste) Susanna), Sara Kaštela (Midwives Washing the Infant Jesus), Buga Kranželić (Saint Mary Magdalene as Hermit and Penitent), Ana Leko (Saint Margaret of Antioch), Barbara Matulić (The Virgin of Mercy), Dario Narančić (The Virgin at the Crucifixion), Karla Somek (Saint Veronica and the Volto Santo), and Ivan Adam Šestan (The Virgin and Child, Saint Anne with the Virgin Mary, The Nativity) – approached these miniatures as visual traces of a complex medieval spirituality and iconographic symbolism.
The research reveals female figures as protagonists, witnesses, protectors, mothers, and penitents – heroines of life. These readings shed light on broader aspects of manuscript culture and the visual language of the Glagolitic tradition.
Both the exhibition and the catalogue offer not only art historical interpretations of selected illuminations but also demonstrate how Glagolitic heritage can serve as a dynamic space of scholarly, pedagogical, and creative inspiration – for students and audiences alike.
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