Empowering Womanhood: Artemisia Gentileschi by

Curation Statement

mneumann5_2 — 2025-07-06 21:52:24 UTC

This exhibition showcases the works of the Italian Baroque painter Artemisia Gentileschi, from the years 1610 to 1653. Artemisia was born in 1593 and continued working until she died in 1653. Born in Rome, Italy, her work is heavily influenced by the historical context in which she lived, thereby adopting the popular Baroque style of the time. Drawing influences from other Baroque artists, such as Caravaggio, as well as her own father's artistic influence, Artemisia's work began to flourish (Barker 28). What makes her work stand out, however, is the heroic, powerful, and complex ways in which she portrayed women.

Studying and learning more about her experiences and life as a woman during this time, it is clear she faced many challenges, most famously, the rape trial against her father's collaborator, Agostino Tassi. Unfortunately, this experience now overshadows much of her work and her career (Ramirez 172). Many art historians associate the power and emotional depth of her work with this violence: “Artemisia’s personal experience is frequently read into the painting, which is seen as a form of visual revenge for her humiliation” (Harris). Although this part of her life is significant, it does not embody her work as a whole.

The narrative that the majority of her work is based upon or in reference to this experience reduces her work to this one part of her life, when in fact, she pushed and fought every day to make a life for herself in the male-dominated system. The goal of this collection of works is to expand on the meaning and significance of her work beyond the violence she was subjected to in her youth. This project will examine how Artemisia uses content, color, and chiaroscuro in her depictions of women to convey agency and resilience.

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Bibliography

mneumann5_2 — 2025-07-06 22:04:06 UTC

"Artemisia Gentileschi: Judith Beheading Holofernes, oil on canvas, c. 1619–20 (Florence, G....." Grove Art Online. . Oxford University Press. Date of access 29 Jun. 2025

Artemisia Gentileschi. La Pittura (Self-Portrait). oil on canvas, creation: 1630. Windsor Castle, Windsor, England, United Kingdom, JSTOR, https://jstor.org/stable/community.14378235. Accessed 6 July 2025.

Barker, Sheila, 1970- author. Artemisia Gentileschi. Los Angeles :Getty Publications, 2022. Date of Access 28 Jun. 2025.

Harris, Ann Sutherland, and Judith W. Mann. "Gentileschi, Artemisia." Grove Art Online. 2003. Oxford University Press. Date of access 3 Jul. 2025, <https://www-oxfordartonline-com.ezproxy.library.wisc.edu/groveart/view/10.1093/gao/9781884446054.001.0001/oao-9781884446054-e-90000370170>

Dr. Letha Ch'ien, "Artemisia Gentileschi, Self-Portrait as the Allegory of Painting or La Pittura," in Smarthistory, October 18, 2024, accessed July 13, 2025, https://smarthistory.org/artemisia-gentileschi-self-portrait-pittura/.

"Esther before Ahasuerus." Grove Art Online. . Oxford University Press. Date of access 3 Jul. 2025

Gentileschi, Artemisia, ca. 1597-ca. 1651. Jael and Sisera. oil on canvas, 1620. Szépmuvészeti Múzeum (Hungary). Visual Arts Legacy Collection. Artstor, JSTOR, https://jstor.org/stable/community.13902586. Accessed 9 July 2025.

Ramírez Alvarado, María Del Mar, and Elena Bellido-Pérez. “Artemisia Gentileschi and the ‘Biographical Sensationalism’ in the Interpretation of Her Artistic Work.” Seventeenth Century, vol. 40, no. 1, Jan. 2025, pp. 165–84. EBSCOhost, https://doi-org.ezproxy.library.wisc.edu/10.1080/0268117X.2024.2424967.

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mneumann5_2 — 2025-07-10 22:13:39 UTC

This work is a scene from the Book of Esther, where Esther, the Jewish wife of the king Ahasuerus, breaks court etiquette and begs him to spare the Jewish people from execution. She risked her life in doing this. Artemisia chose to depict a scene of courage and defiance to express the agency Esther had in this heroic act.

mneumann5_2 — 2025-07-11 00:29:22 UTC

This work is from the Book of Judith and depicts the beheading of Holofernes, a general who planned to destroy Judith's home and city of Bethulia. Artemisia, like Caravaggio, chose to paint the moment of killing. How she deviated, however, is in the strength and exertion in Judith's face and body. This work exudes a sense of liberation and power as Judith takes the fate of the general into her own hands.

mneumann5_2 — 2025-07-11 00:57:52 UTC

Lucretia was an ancient Roman heroine who committed suicide after being raped and threatened by a Roman nobleman. Her suicide led to a rebellion that marked the beginning of the Roman Republic. Many other depictions of Lucretia are erotic and romanticize the tragic event. Artemisia portrays her instead with anguish and determination as Lucretia takes control of her fate and legacy through the act of claiming her own life.

mneumann5_2 — 2025-07-11 23:09:05 UTC

This piece is a scene from the Book of Judges, where Jael is about to kill Sisera, a general turned fugitive, in his sleep after claiming she would hide him from the authorities. This piece is often compared to Judith Beheading Holofernes. Artemisia chooses to portray Jael with a sense of determination and focus, demonstrating her virtue and reasoning despite the situation at hand. It is a rare image of a woman taking the law into her own hands.

mneumann5_2 — 2025-07-11 23:42:02 UTC

This story comes from the Book of Daniel, which shows two older men disturbing the young Susanna while she was trying to take a bath. When she refused any sexual favors, they attempted to blackmail her with allegations of adultery that were later proven false in the court of law. Susanna is often depicted as somewhat receptive to these advances, while Artemisia portrays Susanna with visible discomfort. She contorts her body away from the men with a look of distress and fury upon her face, indicative of her firm denial. Susanna has agency and indignation.

mneumann5_2 — 2025-07-13 17:41:59 UTC

This piece is based on the "Allegory of Painting" illustrated by Cesare Ripa. This illustration is of a woman painting. Artemisia used this to paint herself into the work and to claim the power and agency she had as a woman artist. She portrays herself as a professional in her craft, straying from the idealized and suggestive depictions of women of the time.