“This would be a bold acquisition to make,” said Frederick Ilchman, the chair of European paintings at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. This extraordinary, long-lost portrait by Lavinia Fontana was an outstanding example of the many works by women artists on show Thursday at the bustling preview of the TEFAF Maastricht fair in the Netherlands. The Fontana portrait was priced at 4.5 million euros, about $5 million, on the booth of the Geneva-based dealership Rob Smeets. Ilchman has regularly traveled from Boston to TEFAF since 2007; in that time, the focus of his acquisitions has evolved. It seems like a useful task to amend this discrepancy,” he added, acknowledging that museums with large holdings of pre-20th art can seem disconnected from the 21st century’s cultural concerns.

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Persons: ”, Frederick Ilchman, Antonietta Gonzales, Don Pietro, Duke of Parma, Lavinia Fontana, Rob Smeets, Gentileschi’s, Magdalene, Ilchman, ” Ilchman, “ Organizations: Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, Islands Locations: Maastricht, Netherlands, Geneva, ”, Boston, TEFAF