Artemisia Gentileschi in 10 Paintings

1. Susanna and the Elders, 1610

Trained by her father, Orazio, Artemisia Gentileschi was producing professional paintings at just 15 years old. In 1610, aged 17 she signed and dated her first large-scale work, Susanna and the Elders. This Old Testament tale shows a distressed and vulnerable woman, while two leering men fill the canvas above her, dark and malevolent.

Most artists used this story to present a luscious and passive female nude to the male gaze. Gentileschi focuses on the repulsion and anguish of Susanna. She returned to this subject many times in her career, each painting further exploring the claustrophobic and disquieting nature of the offense.

2. Danaë, 1612

A mythological character from the Roman poet Ovid’s Metamorphoses, Danaë is the daughter of a King Acrisius of Argos. She was imprisoned by her father after prophecy predicted that she will bear a child who would overthrow him. But Zeus enters her prison by transforming himself into a shower of gold and rapes her.

Gentileschi shows brilliant skill at depicting flesh and fabrics while presenting us a nuanced portrait. Danaë swoons as she reclines on a bed, but her legs are closed, and her fist is clenched. Spoiler alert, the child of this rape, Perseus, does indeed kill his grandfather. Serve him right!

3. Judith and Her Maidservant 1615–1617

This almost domestic painting depicts Judith and her maidservant after beheading the general Holofernes, who has been laying waste to their city. They are leaving the scene of the crime, the maidservant carries the bloody head in a basket. One of four paintings Artemisia Gentileschi did on this subject, this version is considered by many to be her finest work. The play of shadow and light is astonishing. Gentileschi’s women have muscular, realistic bodies, they carry out heroic tasks (with other women), and the artist celebrates their power.

4. Allegory of Inclination, 1616

In a Renaissance world teeming with nudes, it’s hard to believe that this painting was censored! It is one of a series of paintings commissioned by the Florentine poet Michelangelo Buonarroti the Younger, to celebrate his uncle, the famous painter and sculptor Michelangelo. Gentileschi was chosen to paint Inclination, also known as natural talent personified.

Apparently embarrassed by the fully nude figure, Buonarroti’s great-nephew paid someone to paint veils and drapes over the naughty bits! In 2022 restorers attempted to restore the painting to its original glory. You can read more about this story here.

5. Self-Portrait as Saint Catherine of Alexandria, 1615–1617

Personal view coming up: I love this painting. I saw it as part of the National Gallery National Treasures tour, paired with a brilliant response by contemporary artist Jesse Jones. The Irish artist spoke of feeling a deep connection and empathy with another artist across time. And when you see the painting, there is a palpable sense of someone looking out at you.

Jones describes the work as three portraits in one, a triple image. There is the pagan Greek philosopher Hypatia of Alexandria, a brilliant astronomer and mathematician, murdered by a Christian mob. There is Saint Catherine of Alexandria, a version of the Hypatia story ironically co-opted by the Christian church, where a young Christian virgin is tortured and martyred by pagans. And then there is Gentileschi, using herself as a model, a complicated, talented woman, excelling in her field.

6. Lucretia, 1623

Wronged and abused women come up a lot in art history. But sadly too many of them are eroticized for male eyes. Urgh. Gentileschi chooses another vision for this traumatized heroine. Roman noblewoman Lucretia kills herself after being blackmailed and raped. In doing so, she sparks a rebellion that led to the establishment of the Roman Republic. Gentileschi shows us the uncomfortable truth of how traditional notions of virtue and chastity bind women, as well as the fatal psychological repercussions of male violence.

Personal or Political?

Art historians almost always refer to her brutal rape at 17 to find the meaning behind Gentileschi and her strong, dynamic women. But the truth is much more complex. Gentileschi had a singular personal vision of becoming a very successful artist in an age when the doors to education and patrons were firmly closed. She was a mother, a lover, and a very successful businesswoman. Yes, she put her suffering into her art, but her story spans decades, and she was very much the author of her own story and the maker of her own image. Contemporary US artist Klaire Lockheart, who studied Gentileschi in Italy, recently spoke about this focus on the rape:

7. Penitent Mary Magdalene, 1625–1626

Centering and exploring female figures in her work is an abiding theme for Gentileschi. She offers her female subjects a depth and an interior life in a way that male artists were not able (or willing) to do. She offers particularly female viewpoints on established narratives which feel as relevant and vivid today as they did 400 years ago. Mary Magdalene was a powerful woman, the embodiment of Christian devotion, but her story was reduced to a footnote by the early Church, keen to suppress the agency and power of women.

8. Venus and Cupid, ca. 1625–1630

A wonderfully natural scene of Venus, the goddess of love, sleeping, while her son Cupid looks on adoringly, fanning her with a peacock feather. The vivid blue of the bedsheets is lapis lazuli, an expensive pigment. The color contrasts strongly with the crimson pillow. This is much more of a “male gaze” painting, where Gentileschi delivered what her wealthy patrons wanted.

9. The Birth of Saint John the Baptist, ca. 1635

The detailed rendering of this space—especially the fabrics and rustic floor tiles, is exceptional. But the beauty of this painting is its domestic setting. Whilst living in Naples, Gentileschi painted a number of religious works, commissioned by churches.

This is the story of Saint John the Baptist, a Biblical miracle, but Gentileschi brings the women of the community to the fore. The aging parents, told by the angel Gabriel to expect a miracle child, are back in the shadows, but it’s the village of ordinary yet extraordinary women who raise the child.

10. Susanna and the Elders, ca. 1652

This is Gentileschi’s last known painting. Her career has come full circle as we return to the subject of Susanna and the Elders. In this work, Susanna raises her arm, fending off the two men. The Elders menace above her, one with a finger to his lips telling her to be quiet. But Susanna (and Artemisia) do not stay silent, they speak out, and they speak to us.

Beneath the breathtaking beauty of these works is a world of information about women’s lives, the injustice they fight, and the courage they find within themselves. Gentileschi shows us sadness and vulnerability, but also power and strength. She underlines the moral and ethical battles women face. Her women break out of the stereotypes of women in art history. One of the first women to achieve success in Western art, her contribution is staggering. Seek out her work and prepare to have your mind blown!