On July 8th, 1593 Artemisia Gentileschi Lomi was born in Rome, Italy. Her father, Orazio Gentileschi, was an artist and he allowed his children to play with paints and drawing materials in his workshop when they were young. Gentileschi took to painting at that early age, showing a knack for it above the skill level of her brothers. By the age of 19 she showed extraordinary talent in painting, surpassing even her father.

She was heavily inspired by her father as he was her primary teacher, and in turn he was heavily influenced by Caravaggio. The first painting that survived her was one she did when 17 years old, called “Susanna and the Elders” (1610), which is a common theme in many pieces by a variety of prominent painters in art history, though her rendition is one of the only ones that depicts the Elders peering on Susanna as she bathes as a creepy, perverted and traumatic event.

She was constantly put down by the men in her life, and faced a lot of harassment, including being raped. Her paintings were similar to Caravaggio’s in that they were shrouded in darkness, similar to her life surrounded by men.

I personally love her work, as it is everything I loved about Caravaggio’s, but it comes from her personal anguish. She lived the experience of a woman in a time that made such a thing difficult, and she made a name for herself regardless. I love the way she handles light and flesh tones, and how all of the figures in her paintings appear to be emerging from the darkness.