Artemisia Gentileschi: A Feminist Analysis

Artemisia Gentileschi (1593-1653) is one of the few best known female artists in Western history, and rightfully so. She was an extraordinary woman and painter from the 17th C that was known for her Caravaggio-esque style and brilliantly strong female forms. She thrived in the Baroque period with various patrons all around Europe, and yet, she was mostly forgotten after her death. She appears to have been a grandmaster of the period, yet fell short historically. This begs the question of why? The contemporary answer has been because she is a woman. The introduction of the feminist perspective into art history, and society overall, has been undeniable and ever-changing. The change from a mono-perspective of the male to the multiple that includes women about women in a mans world was and still is radical. Historically, economically, legally and socially women have been valued as less than men because of the patriarchal structure of society, and this can be seen in Artemisia's case and

For example, Griselda Pollock is another prominent feminist art historian who studied women and social structure in relation to art and what that tells us. In her book Vision and Difference (1988) she reminds the reader that the omission of women in art history was not through forgetfulness, or even mere prejudice, but rather structural sexism that contributed to the perpetuation of the gender hierarchy (p. 1). She does not want to reinforce the patriarchal element of art history and often calls for purging biography and gender from art works to level the playing field. Other writers such as Laura Mulvey, who used psychoanalysis and film studies to explore the concept of the gaze in visual relationships (viewer, subject, artist) and Mary Garrard, who also utilized psychoanalysis and other criticisms to put forth a gender-based