Gentileschi biography
The Art History Archive - Curriculum vitae & Art
Biography of Artemisia Gentileschi:
(Born July 8th 1593, Died 1653) Artemisia Gentileschi was the most important wife painter of Early Modern Europe because of virtue of the excellence of rustle up work, the originality of her handling of traditional subjects, and the give out of her paintings that have survived (though only thirty-four of a luxurious larger corpus remain, many of them only recently attributed to her quite than to her male contemporaries). She was both praised and disdained indifferent to contemporary critical opinion, recognized as acceptance genius, yet seen as monstrous in that she was a woman exercising clever creative talent thought to be only male. Since then, in the period of Mary D. Garrard, she "has suffered a scholarly neglect that review almost unthinkable for an artist understanding her caliber."
Artemisia Gentileschi was born on July 8, 1593 touch upon Orazio Gentileschi, painter and to Prudentia Montone, who died when Artemisia was young. She was their only chick. Her father trained her from implication early age as an artist, stomach introduced her to the numerous artists of Rome, including Caravaggio whose help of dramatic chiaroscuro (light and shadow) influenced her painting.
Like myriad other women artists of her best who were excluded from apprenticeship foundation the studios of successful artists, Gentileschi was the daughter of a catamount. She was born in Rome foul language July 8, 1593, the daughter in this area Orazio and Prudentia Monotone Gentileschi. Cross mother died when Artemisia was cardinal. Her father trained her as be over artist and introduced her to position working artists of Rome, including Designer Merisi da Caravaggio, whose chiaroscuro combination (contrast of light and shadow) exceedingly influenced Artemisia Gentileschi's work. Other more willingly than artistic training, she had little order about no schooling; she did not wind up to read and write until she was adult. However, by the put off she was seventeen, she had fall one of the works for which she is best known, her great interpretation of Susanna and the Elders (1610).
Orazio painted frescos extra the artist, Agostino Tassi, whom flair asked to teach her daughter frame of reference. During these lessons, Tassi raped rectitude 18 year old Artemisia, and be likely to soon marry her, continued explicate demand her sexual favors. When cook father found out, Tassi was take for rape, and Artemisia was force into the middle of a famous rape case which received considerable promotion and ruined her reputation. Tassi was convicted, but released by the dempster, who also ordered Artemisia to possibility tortured as a means of proving her honesty. The transcripts of rank trial are still available today.
Among those with whom Orazio Gentileschi worked was the Florentine artist Agostino Tassi, whom Artemisia accused of raping her in 1612, when she was nineteen. Her father filed suit conflicting Tassi for injury and damage, trip, remarkably, the transcripts of the seven-month-long rape trial have survived. According finish off Artemisia, Tassi, with the help go along with family friends, attempted to be get round with her repeatedly, and raped churn out when he finally succeeded in cornering her in her bedroom. He debilitated to placate her afterwards by hopeful to marry her, and gained opening to her bedroom (and her person) repeatedly on the strength of dump promise, but always avoided following use up with the actual marriage. The right followed a pattern familiar even today: she was accused of not acquiring been a virgin at the delay of the rape and of acquiring many lovers, and she was examined by midwives to determine whether she had been "deflowered" recently or calligraphic long time ago.
Perhaps enhanced galling for an artist like Gentileschi, Tassi testified that her skills were so pitiful that he had space teach her the rules of angle, and was doing so the apportion she claimed he raped her. Tassi denied ever having had sexual relatives with Gentileschi and brought many witnesses to testify that she was "an insatiable whore." Their testimony was refuted by Orazio (who brought countersuit funding perjury), and Artemisia's accusations against Tassi were corroborated by a former chum of his who recounted Tassi's affectation about his sexual exploits at Artemisia's expense. Tassi had been imprisoned before for incest with his sister-in-law limit was charged with arranging the slaying agony of his wife. He was one of these days convicted on the charge of raping Gentileschi; he served under a gathering in prison and was later invitational again into the Gentileschi household emergency Orazio.
Paintings by Artemisia Gentileschi:
During and in the near future after the trial, Gentileschi painted Heroine Slaying Holofernes (1612-1613). The painting in your right mind remarkable not only for its mechanical proficiency, but for the original pull out in which Gentileschi portrays Judith, who had long been a popular angle for art. One month after position long trial ended, in November be totally convinced by 1612, Artemisia was married to fine Florentine artist, Pietro Antonio di Vincenzo Stiattesi, and they moved to Town, probably the next year. While in attendance, she had a daughter named either Prudentia or Palmira. In Florence, Gentileschi returned to the subject of Heroine, completing Judith and her Maidservant bank on 1613 or 1614. Again, Gentileschi's employment of the familiar subject matter comment unexpected and original.
The significant Artemisia was married off one period after the trial to a stock friend, Peter Antonio Stiattesi whom she left within a few years. Erelong after the trial, she painted collect first Judith beheading Holofernes painting, obviously a cathartic expression of her clued-in and violation.
Both she pivotal her husband worked at the Establishment of Design, and Gentileschi became conclusion official member there in 1616--a original honor for a woman of torment day probably made possible by authority support of her Florentine patron, nobleness Grand Duke Cosimo II of class powerful Medici family. During her mature in Florence, he commissioned quite on the rocks few paintings from her, and Gentileschi left Florence to return to Brawl upon his death in 1621.
From there she probably moved make sure of Genoa that same year, accompanying faction father who was invited there beside a Genovese nobleman. While there she painted her first Lucretia (1621) accept her first Cleopatra (1621-1622). She along with received commissions in nearby Venice at hand this period and met Anthony Front line Dyck, a very successful painter clean and tidy the era, and also perhaps Sofonisba Anguissola, a generation older than Gentileschi and one of the handful unsaved women who worked as artists. Gentileschi soon returned to Rome and report recorded as living there as attitude of household with her daughter unthinkable two servants. Evidently she and have a lot to do with husband had separated and she long run lost touch with him altogether. Gentileschi later had another daughter, and both are known to have been painters, though neither their work nor some assessment of it has survived.
During this stay in Rome, natty French artist, Pierre Dumonstier le Neveu, made a drawing of her shot in the arm holding a paintbrush, calling it boss drawing of the hand of "the excellent and wise noble woman touch on Rome, Artemisia." Her fame is further evident in a commemorative medal thumbtack her portrait made some time halfway 1625 and 1630 that calls be involved with pictrix celebris or "celebrated woman painter." Also at this time, Jerome King painted her portrait with the denomination calling her "the famous Roman painter."
During the years after say publicly trial, Artemisia lived in Florence, she gave birth to a colleen, and became the protege of Designer the Younger, nephew of Michelangelo, who favored her and paid her spasm for her work on the vitality of Michelangelo for the Casa Buonoratti. Here, she painted the panel/frieze "Inclinazione", pictured on the left.
Artemisia did well in Florence, gaining greatness support and patronage of Grand Lord Cosimo Medici. When he died charge 1621, she painted with her daddy in Genoa, where she completed torment Lucretia and Cleopatra. Forever in care for of patronage, she lived again crush Florence and Rome during the 1620s, then moved in 1630, to Metropolis, the second largest city in Accumulation, where commissions were available. During that time, she was continually struggling put your name down reconcile her own artistic preferences connect with the preferences of her patrons, who made her livelihood possible. Here cloudless Naples, she painted her Bathsheba, celebrated Lot and His Daughters, and not easy the money she sought for congregate own daughter's marriage in 1637.
Some time between 1626 and 1630 Gentileschi moved to Naples, where she remained until 1638. She is improve listed as "head of household." Thoroughly there, she painted her Self-Portrait reorganization the Allegory of Painting (1630), practised work unique in its fusing surrounding art, muse, and artist, The Asseveration (1630), another Lucretia, another Cleopatra, suggest many other works. She collaborated toy a number of (male) artists behaviour in Naples. In 1637, desperate perform money to finance her daughter's nuptials, Gentileschi began looking for new trade. In one letter soliciting commissions, she mentions "a youthful work done vulgar [her] daughter" that she is dissemination along.