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Paperback – 145 x 115 mm – 192 pages

52 pages of colour illustrations

ISBN 9781843681960

‘I have seen myself honoured by all the kings and rulers of Europe to whom I have sent my works, not only with great gifts but also with most favoured letters...’

In a letter to Galileo, Artemisia Gentileschi thus sums up her prominence in the male-dominated art world of seventeenth-century Italy. This volume presents letters and biographies written by contemporaries that provide an illuminating, engrossing look at the famed Italian Baroque painter who managed to attain international critical admiration and financial success at a time when women artists were rare, overlooked, and undervalued. It also contains some of the dramatic testimony at the notorious trial of her fellow painter Agostino Tassi for raping Artemisia, where she had to undergo torture.

Artemisia Gentileschi (1593-1656) was a highly accomplished Italian Baroque painter, known for her skill in colouring and her ability to convincingly depict the female figure. In an era when female painters were not easily accepted by the artistic community, she was the first woman to become a member of the Accademia di Arte del Disegno in Florence and had an international clientèle of nobility and royalty. A survivor of torture, a single mother, and a painter of incredible talent, Artemisia blazed a trail for women artists for centuries to come.

Throughout her career, she worked in Florence, Naples, Rome, and even the English court at the invitation of Charles I. Her letters show a strong-willed, industrious artist navigating the troubles of the seventeenth century.

Leading Gentileschi scholar Sheila Barker has collected enlightening early biographies of Artemisia and the most relevant of her many letters, including love letters never before translated into English, creating a fascinating and rounded picture of the life of this influential artist. Barker is the founder of the Jane Fortune Research programme, which won a Society for the Study of Early Modern Women Prize for digital scholarship.