Today I learned about the Italian Baroque painter Artemisia Gentileschi. Her work is quite stunning... and very haunting (think Caravaggio!).
Highlights from Wikipedia:
- 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 15. She was also known as Artemisia Lomi.
- 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.
- Many of Gentileschi's paintings feature women from myths, allegories, and the Bible, including victims, suicides, and warriors.
- Gentileschi was known for being able to depict the female figure with great naturalism and for her skill in handling colour to express dimension and drama.
- Her achievements as an artist were long overshadowed by a trauma as a young woman. I'll let you read about it in Wikipedia.
