It’s an old story: men prey on girls and young women. Today, as women come forward to expose sexual predation, Artemisia Gentileschi stands as an exemplary symbol. She stands as a symbol of justice, having been raped in 1610 when she was seventeen years old. With an iron will, she endured a harsh trial that lasted seven months, and was subjected to physical torture as part of this trial to verify her testimony. Her attacker, Agostino Tassi, also a painter, was convicted. His punishment was banishment from Rome, which was never carried out, and he spent less than a year in prison. Artemisia continued to create stunning paintings throughout her life, most of which depicted strong women. She was the first woman to be accepted into the Accademia di Florence, an academy for leading artists of the Medici court and of which Michelangelo was also a member.
Artemisia was clearly influenced by her contemporary Caravaggio – their combined use of light and shadows, painting on a dark ground rather than the traditional white, and building to lighter tones. Unlike Caravaggio, Artemisia’s work focuses on women’s strength and weakness, the enslavement of men and the transformation of violence. in Judith beheads Holofernes (1620), the resolute Judith beheads a drunken Assyrian general in two swift blows, drawn from the apocryphal Book of Judith. Holofernes dared to lay siege to the city of Judith. Tassi dared to besiege Artemisia’s virginity. The painting is a graphic depiction of revenge. Unlike Caravaggio’s version of the same theme, the crimson blood here is anatomically correct, flowing to the top and pooling at the bottom. Artemisia’s Judith appears calmly determined, the culmination of a well-planned act, while Caravaggio’s Judith leans away as if terrified. Artemisia’s Judith also leans away – but only because blood is running down her golden dress. It is worth noting that the bracelet that Judith wears is studded with multiple images of Artemisia herself.
Another amazing painting is Madonna and Childwas painted when Artemisia was only twenty years old. The love between mother and child is palpable, and the baby’s tender reach towards his mother’s face is particularly touching. Artemisia gave birth to five children between 1613 and 1618, four sons and a daughter. Prudentia, named after her mother, was the only one to survive infancy.
A rare opportunity to see three of Artemisia’s paintings is now on display at the Columbus Museum of Art in Columbus, Ohio. Seeing these works in a museum gallery, along with other paintings from the same period, is a testament to her masterful manipulation of rich colours, her dramatic and vivid compositions and her unique interpretation of mythological themes. Like Caravaggio, she worked with live models, which enabled her to capture gestures, expressions and reaction in the moment of action. Lucretia (1627) reveals a mature artist, painted when Artemisia was only thirty-four. It depicts the public suicide of a Roman noblewoman: Lucretia was raped by Sextus Tarquinius, the son of the former king of Rome, and her act of revenge sparked a revolution that replaced dynastic rule with an elected republic. With luminous pearls and billowing fabric over sensual flesh and hair, the painting shows Lucretia pleading towards the heavens, vulnerable and uncertain – a self-portrait of Artemisia herself, tortured in her innocence. She would rather die than be humiliated.
There is also an exhibit at the Columbus Museum of equal interest Hercules and Omphale. The myth is usually treated as satire, with humor, but here Artemisia approaches it with characteristic seriousness. Queen Omphale takes the Greek hero Hercules as her slave in revenge for her brother’s murder, forcing him to wear women’s robes and spin wool. She not only castrates him, she seduces him, as evidenced by his open gaze and the joyous Cupid resting on his thigh, while threatening clouds roll in outside the doorway. Clearly, Hercules was lost. Omphali wins. The gallery also has an excellent touch screen where visitors can scroll through 60 images of this legend by different artists across the centuries. There is no fragrance as dramatic, powerful or charged with feminine power as Artemisia.
BathshebaOwned by the museum, it depicts another myth that resonates strongly today. King David spies on the beautiful woman in her bath from his balcony above, and plans to possess her. Bathsheba was married to Uriah the Hittite, so the king sent him into battle until his death. Historically, the story has been interpreted as Bathsheba seducing the king, but Artemisia knows better. From a different perspective, Bathsheba’s beauty is shown alongside her vulnerability and innocence – as she bathes on her balcony, surrounded by trusted hostesses, completely unaware of the leering gaze of the king above. Artemisia’s rendition of expressive hands and feet, in both her male and female characters, is a marvel. She was an accomplished painter.
One would like to see an exhibition that brought Artemisia and Caravaggio side by side – their strong, virtuous women alongside their scoundrels, their shared deep reds and blacks, their play of shadow and light. Their paintings will speak to each other beautifully. But the moral weight of Artemisia’s dramatic works goes beyond Caravaggio’s drama. Her work is for the ages, as she has been advocating for women for 500 years. She was mighty in trying to change things. Unfortunately, the struggle is not over yet.
“Artemisia Gentileschi: Naples to Beirut“On display at the Columbus Museum of Art until May 31, 2026.
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