Artist of the day, March 17, 2025: Artemisia Gentileschi, an Italian painter / Baroque (#2234)

Artemisia Gentileschi (1593 - 1653) was an Italian Baroque painter, today considered one of the most accomplished painters in the generation following that of Caravaggio. In an era when women painters were not easily accepted by the artistic community or patrons, she was the first woman to become a member of the Accademia di Arte del Disegno in Florence, She  was the most important woman painter by virtue of the excellence of her work, the originality of her treatment of traditional subjects, and the number of her paintings that have survived (though only thirty-four of a much larger corpus remain, many of them only recently attributed to her rather than to her male contemporaries). She was both praised and disdained by contemporary critical opinion, recognized as having genius, yet seen as monstrous because she was a woman exercising a creative talent thought to be exclusively male.

Being a girl she was not accepted into any painting academy. Her father then had a colleague give her further lessons. This Agostino Tassi not only taught her painting but raped her as well. When that became public Tassi was sent to jail for a year. After the trial, Artemisia was the first woman ever admitted into the Accademia dell’Arte del Disegno in Florence. Since she was a woman, she could paint live nude female models. This gave her an advantage over male painters, who were prevented from using live female nude models.

She made her first well-known work at the age of 17: Susanna and the Elders. Some think that Artemisia had been harrassed just like Susanna, and that she used that experience in the painting.

© 2025. All content on this blog is protected by international copyright laws All images are copyrighted © by Michel Bergeron/VisualDiplomacy or assignee. Apart from fair dealing for the purpose of private study, research, criticism or review as permitted under the Copyright Act, the use of any image from this site is prohibited unless prior written permission is obtained. All images used for illustrative purposes only

Ms. Artemisia Gentileschi, Self-portrait

Self-Portrait as a Female Martyr, circa 1615

Virgin and Child with a Rosary, circa 1651

Lucretia, Circa 1645

Venus Embracing Cupid, Circa 1640

Samson and Delilah, Circa 1630

Corsica and the Satyr, Circa 1630

Birth of Saint John the Baptist, circa 1630

Allegory of fame, circa 1630

Esther before Ahasuerus, circa 1628

Venus and Cupid, circa 1625

Aurora, circa 1625

Portrait of a Gonfaloniere, circa 1622

Judith and her Maidservant with the Head of Holofernes, circa 1621

Danae, circa 1621

Sainte Catherine of Alexandria, circa 1620

Saint Cecilia, circa 1620

ael and Sisera, circa 1620

Sainte Catherine of Alexandria, circa 1618

Mary Magdalene, circa 1616

Self-Portrait as a Lute Player (detail),  circa 1615

Sainte Catherine of Alexandria, circa 1614

Judith Slaying Holofernes, circa 1614

Portrait of a Nun, circa 1613

Maria Maddalena, circa 1613

Madonna and Child, circa 1613

 Danae, circa 1612

Lucretia, circa 1612

Judith Beheading Holofernes, circa 1611

Cleopatra, circa 1611

Artist of the Day, July 18, 2022: Artemisia Gentileschi, an Italian Baroque painter (#1624)

 Artemisia Lomi or Artemisia Gentileschi (1593 – 1656) was an Italian Baroque painter. Gentileschi is considered among the most accomplished seventeenth-century artists, initially working in the style of Caravaggio. She was producing professional work by the age of fifteen. In an era when women had few opportunities to pursue artistic training or work as professional artists, Gentileschi was the first woman to become a member of the Accademia di Arte del Disegno in Florence and she had an international clientele.

Born in Rome, Artemisia was brought up by her father, the painter Orazio Gentileschi. She trained alongside her three brothers in his workshop, where she proved the most talented of all his children.

At the age of only 17, Artemisia was raped by the painter Agostino Tassi. There followed an infamous trial in 1612, in which Artemisia was subjected to gruelling questioning and torture. Tassi was found guilty, but his punishment never enforced.

The story of her rape has defined the way art historians talk about Artemisia, especially the explicitly violent scenes in which a strong heroine is the main protagonist. While Artemisia’s personal identity is closely intertwined with her artistic production, there are many other experiences which shaped both her life and her art.

Following the trial Artemisia married a little-known Florentine artist, and left Rome for Florence. There she had five children and established herself as an independent artist, becoming the first woman to gain membership to the Academy of the Arts of Drawing in 1616.

Artemisia returned to Rome in 1620, by which point she had become an extremely sought-after artist with a “house full of cardinals and princes wanting pictures from her”. She was a follower of Caravaggio, and, like her male counterparts, tackled big historical and biblical subjects, with her own distinct style.

The last 25 years of her life were spent in Naples, where she had established a successful workshop – an extraordinary achievement considering she wasn’t permanently employed at one royal court, nor did she enjoy the protection of a wealthy, powerful or influential husband.

In this self portrait, Artemisia shows herself in the guise of the 4th-century martyr, Saint Catherine of Alexandria. Sentenced to death by the emperor Maxentius, Catherine was bound to revolving wheels studded with iron spikes. Saved through heavenly intervention, she was later beheaded, but the instrument of her torture – a broken wheel – became her common attribute in art. Artemisia has deliberately chosen to use her own image for the martyr and depicts Saint Catherine as determined and empowered after her divine rescue.

 For many years Gentileschi was regarded as a curiosity, but her life and art have been reexamined by scholars in the twentieth and twenty-first centuries. She is now regarded as one of the most progressive and expressive painters of her generation, with the recognition of her talents exemplified by major exhibitions at internationally esteemed fine art institutions, such as the National Gallery in London.

© 2022. All content on this blog is protected by international copyright laws All images are copyrighted © by Artist of the Day or assignee. Apart from fair dealing for the purpose of private study, research, criticism or review as permitted under the Copyright Act, the use of any image from this site is prohibited unless prior written permission is obtained. All images used for illustrative purposes only

Self-Portrait as the Allegory of Painting, 1638–39

Susanna and the Elders, 1610 1

Susanna and the Elders II

Salome with the Head of Saint John the Baptist, 1610–15

Cleopatra, 1611-12

Judith Slaying Holofernes, 1614–12

Self-portrait as Female Martyr, 1615

Self-Portrait as a Lute Player, 1615–17 detail

Self-Portrait as a Lute Player, 1615–17

Salome with the Head of Saint John the Baptist, 1618–19

Self-portrait as Saint Catherine of Alexandria, 1619

Jael and Sisera, 1620

Mary Magdalene, 1620

Portrait of a Lady, 1620

Lucretia, 1620–21

Penitent Magdalen, 1622-25

Mary Magdalene in Ecstasy, 1623

Judith and her Maidservant, 1625

Venus and Cupid, 1625–30

Christ Blessing the Children, 1626

Woman playing Lute, 1628-29

Esther before Ahasuerus, 1628–35

Annunciation, 1630

Samson and Delilah, 1630–38

Corisca and the Satyr, 1632

Cleopatra, 1633–35

Birth of St John the Baptist, 1635

Lot and His Daughters, 1635–38

David and Bathsheba, 1636–37

Bathsheba, 1645–50

Lucretia, 1650

 Susanna and the Elders, 1654