Woman of the month: Artemisia – revenge in paint?

Written by Annabel Shone


Please be advised this blog contains references to sexual assault.

Artemisia Gentileschi – painter, mother, and subject of the National’s Gallery’s Covid comeback exhibition, Artemisia. But who exactly is she, and why are we only hearing about her now?

Artemisia Gentileschi was a 17th century female Baroque painter, known for her skilled use of colour and dramatic depictions of women. Her father Orazio was a painter and taught her in his own studio. Her mother, Prudenzia, died when she was 12, leaving Artemisia to bring up her three younger brothers. Long forgotten in favour of her male contemporaries, interest in her work was revived in the 1980s by feminist academics and art historians. She is currently the first female subject of a major retrospective exhibition in the UK.

Artemisia’s work has long been overshadowed by the story of her rape, and the long public trial that followed. Aged just 17, she was assaulted by her father’s colleague Agostino Tassi in her home. During the seven-month trial, Artemisia underwent torture to prove her integrity. Ropes were tightened around her fingers, a process chosen to threaten maximum damage to her artist’s hands. Tassi was eventually found guilty and sentenced to a five-year exile from Rome - a sentence he never served, being in favour with the Pope. Artemisia was married in secret and moved to Florence where she became the first female member of the Accademia. After returning to Rome she moved to Naples, where, with the exception of a brief trip to London, she remained for the rest of her life.

In Laura Cumming’s words, “a vengeance theory inevitably persists”. It is easy to see Artemisia’s work Judith beheading Holofernes (image below) as simply what she would like to do to Tassi, brought to life in dramatic lighting under the guise of a biblical story. Artemisia features in many of her own paintings - as a painter, as a lute player, and as St Catherine of Alexandria - so it is not a stretch to say she, consciously or subconsciously, inserts herself as Judith. However, just because she can be found in the character doesn’t mean the character can, or should, be reduced to her. Surely it is detrimental to her work to see this exquisite rendition of the tale purely as the revenge she can never achieve? It is my opinion that this biographically focused reading of her work contributes to people’s perceptions of Artemisia being a minor character in the chronology of art, who only deserves a mention to fill a gender quota.


Judith beheading Holofernes

In 1993, Camille Paglia, a feminist academic and social critic, labelled Artemisia as “simply a polished competent painter in a Baroque style created by men.”, not worthy to be part of the canon or to be labelled a ‘great artist’. Paglia goes on to say that “all art belongs to its social context, but great art by definition transcends that context and speaks universally.” It could be argued that by Paglia’s own definition, Artemisia’s work is art that should be labelled as great as, if not greater, than typically ‘canonical’ artists'. When we compare Artemisia’s Susanna with those of the ‘greats’, Artemisia’s is the one that speaks to the modern viewer most.

In the story, Susanna is spied on as she bathes by two elders (view painting), who demand sexual favours and accuse her of adultery when she doesn’t comply. Unlike the countless men who eroticised and warped this scene before her, Artemisia does not betray Susanna by rendering her coy or flirtatious. She does not allow the viewer to become an accessory in the crime, to enjoy Susanna’s humiliation, as Tintoretto and Reubens both do. Despite being this being a biblical story painted in the early 17th century, it speaks universally. The disgust on Susanna’s face and the distress in her contorted frame resonate with those who view it even to this day.

I believe Artemisia and her work are so much more than the ordeal which has come to define her life and legacy. She was a strong, self-sufficient, occasionally foul-mouthed Renaissance artist who pioneered the depiction of women as something other than chaste virgins or objects for the male gaze. It is fitting that the National Gallery has chosen to honour her work with their most recent retrospective exhibition.

Sources

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Artemisia_Gentileschi

https://www.nationalgallery.org.uk/exhibitions/artemisia

https://www.washingtonpost.com/gdpr-consent/?next_url=https%3a%2f%2fwww.washingtonpost.com%2farchive%2fopinions%2f1993%2f09%2f26%2fmy-case-for-the-new-sexism%2f59a7181d-002b-4aaa-9eed-2e76d69dbc58%2f

https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2020/oct/04/artemisia-review-overwhelmingly-present

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