Posted on 21st December 2020 // Culture / Reviews / Uncategorized // 2 Comments
The Art and Life of Artemisia Gentileschi (1593- 1654)
Dave Kellaway reviews the current National Gallery exhibition (until 24
th January)
Caravaggio (left), Gentileschi (right)
The pictures above tell the biblical story of Judith, a Jewish widow, who saved the city of Bethulia from the Assyrians by killing their general, Holofernes. It was a popular subject for artists at the time. Caravaggio, who was a big influence on Artemisia, painted the version on the left in 1599. If you compare his version with the one painted by her (on the right) you notice how much more she captures the extreme violence and the physical effort involved. Judith, in Caravaggio’s picture, is leaning back, almost avoiding the blood splatter whereas here the blood flicks onto her breasts. Artemisia paints the young maidservant as a very active ‘sisterly’ participant helping to hold down Holofernes, for Caravaggio she
Artemisia Gentileschi,
HEIC ARTEMISIA
the tombstone of Artemisia Gentileschi is said to have read. Clear and simple, forgoing the usual embellishments, such as names of father, husband, and children, dates of birth and death. HEIC ARTEMISIA, or HERE LIES ARTEMISIA.
Artemisia: now commonly referred to by her first name only (Madonna! Cher! Beyoncé!), in order to avoid confusion with that other famous Baroque Gentileschi
pittore, her father, Orazio. In life, she also went by the surname Lomi, a nod to the traditional artisans of her Tuscan heritage, which she thought might endear her to the powers and patrons of Florence, where she moved from Rome in 1613, at the age of nineteen.