Artemisia Gentileschi

Artemisia Gentileschi was an Italian Baroque painter and one of the most accomplished artists of her age. Born in Rome in 1593, she trained under her painter father and became a master of dramatic, powerful scenes lit in the bold style of Caravaggio. She is famous for her intense depictions of strong biblical women, above all her striking painting of Judith beheading the general Holofernes.

As a woman in a male-dominated field she overcame enormous obstacles, including a traumatic assault and public trial in her youth, and she went on to a successful international career serving royal and noble patrons. Long overshadowed, she is now celebrated as one of the great painters of the Baroque and a landmark figure in the history of women in art.