Darryl Jon Guinto, Mini Post 

Artemisia Gentileschi

Judith Slaying Holofernes

The painting above Judith Slaying Holofernes 1910 was a creation of Artemisia Gentileschi, she was an Italian Baroque painter towards the end of the 1500s and early 1600s. At this time it was very rare to see or have acknowledged female painters. Art in history is a very male-dominated space but she was one of the few females to stand out. The depiction above is of two women murdering a man with a dagger that looks like he was just trying to sleep. Just like many paintings of this time, it is an oil canvas. The painting recounts a story from the book of Judith. Holofernes is the man that is being murdered in the painting. He is was Assyrian General who captured the city of Bethulia where Judith lived. Judith a beautiful woman, was invited to meet with Holofernes where you can guess what happened. She beheads Holofernes to avenge her city.

But why is this painting so important? First, it is important to know a bit about Gentileschi's life. A detail that everybody needs to know about her is that at a young age she was raped by a man named Agostino Tassi. For a big part of her life, she lived with males because her mother died when she was 12. It can be assumed with these details that she has an underlying resentment towards men which is reflected through her artwork. Her life was dark and her art may be a representation of it. The painting represents the power of women in society, it is a depiction of the importance of women no matter what position. Judith is seen as a tool to the man (Holofernes) but to her city, she is somewhat of a hero. At this time the culture was centered around men but if Artemisia was alive today she would want to tell the world that without women society would collapse through her art. Women hold an equal amount of influence in a place where women are not seen as working-class citizens of this time.