Comparing Artemisa Gentileschi Painting And Artemisia's Hand
A Comparison Between “Artemisia Gentileschi and Caraveggisti Painting” by Henry Sayre and “Artemisia’s Hand” by Mary D. Garrard
When looking at the development of Western art history, people tend to focus on the male artists’ contribution but neglect the significant influence of female artists on the art world through their active engagement in the production of art. Artemisia Gentileschi, both as one of the the most accomplished Caravaggio’s followers and one of the first female artists to achieve an international reputation (Sayre 295), provided art historians with a feminine perspective on the establishment of Baroque style. By comparing Henry Sayre’s general survey “Artemisia Gentileschi and Caraveggisti Painting” with Mary D. Garrard’s …show more content…
Artemisia’s life-changing event happened in 1612 when she was 19, she was raped by her teacher, a Florentine artist named Agostino Tassi. Soon after the rape, Artemisia’s father filed suit against Tassi for his injury to his daughter. However, Tassi accused that Artemisia has a previous history of sleeping with many men. Therefore Artemisia was tortured with thumbscrews to test the validity of her testimony, and was examined by midwives to find out how recently she has lost her virginity. In the end, despite the fact that Tassi was charged only one year in prison for his crime, Artemisia won the lawsuit (Sayre 295). Not long after the trail, Artemisia painted five separate versions of biblical story of Judith and Holofernes. In the first version, Judith and Maidservant with Head of Holofernes, Sayre claims that Artemisia transforms her own adversity in her paintings and treats Judith as a self-portrait of herself (296). Just like the Jewish heroine Judith who seduces and beheaded the lustful leader in the enemy Assyrian camp to protect her country, Artemisia also seeks revenge on the lascivious rapist Tassi and exercises her legal right not only as a lawful citizen, but also as an independent feminist. What’s more, both by the performance of female agency, Judith saved her country from being occupied by the enemy, and Artemisia saved herself on the court from suffering torture, insult and indignity. To sum up, Sayre’s general survey provides undergraduate students with basic biographical information on Artemisia’s personal life fighting
When looking at the development of Western art history, people tend to focus on the male artists’ contribution but neglect the significant influence of female artists on the art world through their active engagement in the production of art. Artemisia Gentileschi, both as one of the the most accomplished Caravaggio’s followers and one of the first female artists to achieve an international reputation (Sayre 295), provided art historians with a feminine perspective on the establishment of Baroque style. By comparing Henry Sayre’s general survey “Artemisia Gentileschi and Caraveggisti Painting” with Mary D. Garrard’s …show more content…
Artemisia’s life-changing event happened in 1612 when she was 19, she was raped by her teacher, a Florentine artist named Agostino Tassi. Soon after the rape, Artemisia’s father filed suit against Tassi for his injury to his daughter. However, Tassi accused that Artemisia has a previous history of sleeping with many men. Therefore Artemisia was tortured with thumbscrews to test the validity of her testimony, and was examined by midwives to find out how recently she has lost her virginity. In the end, despite the fact that Tassi was charged only one year in prison for his crime, Artemisia won the lawsuit (Sayre 295). Not long after the trail, Artemisia painted five separate versions of biblical story of Judith and Holofernes. In the first version, Judith and Maidservant with Head of Holofernes, Sayre claims that Artemisia transforms her own adversity in her paintings and treats Judith as a self-portrait of herself (296). Just like the Jewish heroine Judith who seduces and beheaded the lustful leader in the enemy Assyrian camp to protect her country, Artemisia also seeks revenge on the lascivious rapist Tassi and exercises her legal right not only as a lawful citizen, but also as an independent feminist. What’s more, both by the performance of female agency, Judith saved her country from being occupied by the enemy, and Artemisia saved herself on the court from suffering torture, insult and indignity. To sum up, Sayre’s general survey provides undergraduate students with basic biographical information on Artemisia’s personal life fighting