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• 1 media/1200px-Susanna_and_the_Elders_(1610),_Artemisia_Gentileschi.jpg media/1200px-Susanna_and_the_Elders_(1610),_Artemisia_Gentileschi.jpg 2020-10-14T21:51:55+00:00 Susanna and the Elders, Artemisia Gentileschi 18 By Rhea Rangarajan image_header 2020-10-19T06:30:45+00:00 Artemisia Gentileschi is considered one of the great women painters from the Baroque art period from the early 17th century. She was a bright young woman who took painting after her father, Orazio Gentileschi, who encouraged her to strive to accomplish her goals. Gentileschi was unique because she strayed away from the societal norm and made herself known in the art world when it was dominated by men during the 17th century. She was inspired by works of Caravaggio and developed her own style at a young age to distinguish herself as a prominent woman artist. Gentileschi’s paintings reveal a deeper meaning as she expresses her feelings and personal experiences in her work. One of her first paintings, Susanna and the Elders, delves into situations and experiences she went through when she was growing up with her father being a painter and being surrounded by other male painters in the household. Even though Artemisia Gentileschi started her painting career at a young age, her ability to create pieces of art that focused on her experiences with feminism and sexism on a deeper level ultimately spread awareness of the problems women faced during the 17th century and paved a path of success for her. 
  
  Artemisia learned her technique and stylistic ways of painting from her father, Orazio, who inspired her and encouraged her to pursue her passion. Orazio was there to guide her with her troubles as a struggling painter and as she grew older, she became an apprentice under him where she developed her skills to be prepared for her own career as an artist one day. When she first started out she mimicked her father’s painting style until she managed to discover her own unique style which distinguished her work from her father’s work. Her painting technique along with her passion for a theme of feminism in her paintings allowed her to stand out among other artists. Her attention to detail and technique was so impressive that it helped her succeed and acquire new opportunities throughout her career. 
  
  Growing up, Artemisia Gentileschi was constantly surrounded by her painter father, Orazio, and his colleagues and apprentices which shaped her as an artist and a person. Though she was lucky enough to learn her painting skills from her father, she was also affected by the male painters who were constantly around. Since she was always in the presence of all these men, she became self-aware of the differing roles of men versus women in the 17th century. Artemisia was in her teenage years when one specific male, Agostino Tassi, consistently gave her a hard time. Mary Garrard, a famous art historian claims that Artemisia was ‘sexually intimidated’ by Agostino Tassi when she was growing up, which led her to express her feelings and portray her experiences in her paintings. Artemisia was only around 17 years old in 1610 when she started her career and painted Susanna and the Elders. Her experience with Agostino Tassi and his sexual advances toward her inspired her to paint Susanna and the Elders to express what she was going through behind the scenes. She wanted to show how in the 17th century, men were constantly sexualizing women and trying to overpower them into submission. In the painting, a naked Susanna is being preyed upon by two fully clothed, older men. In her life, she felt intimidated by an older man, Tassi, who was making her feel pressured and uncomfortable. Men were used to being dominant and stronger than the women in their life and society put them on a pedestal which led to the ignorance of women and crushed their confidence in their ability to have skills besides their hobbies. Gentileschi was trying to become an artist, not just a wife, and viewed Tassi’s behavior as inappropriate. She was ahead of her time because as a woman, she strived to have an artistic career, and fortunately was given an opportunity to do so, whereas other women may not have had those same opportunities. This experience with Tassi helped her realize that she had a talent that could be used as a voice for women that gave them a sense of empowerment and confidence. 
  
  Elements in Gentileschi’s portrayal of Susanna and the Elders emphasize her feminist beliefs which led to the success of this painting. In the painting, Susanna is turning away from the two men prowling “while [her] two-handed gesture conveys her intimidation and desire to escape.” The detail in her facial expressions show distress and her body language shows how uncomfortable she is, while the men seem eager to take control. This depiction emphasizes Artemisia’s own feelings of distress when Tassi would make sexual advances towards her. Men were so demanding and expected women to obey, while the women felt powerless due to societal norms and rules. Artemisia wanted to change the perspective of the viewer to not sexualize Susanna, but rather to empathize with her. Edward Olszewski, an Italian renaissance art expert argues Gentileschi wanted Susanna to be the main focus of the painting as she takes up a majority of space, to emphasize the innocence, and true natural beauty of the female body instead of the beauty of the female body from a man’s point of view. The details on Susanna’s body show a different appearance than other renditions of this painting as Gentileschi wanted to portray the natural beauty to celebrate women unlike how men celebrate women. The painting is more realistic than it is erotic, as those details of Susanna’s body are anatomically correct, but not necessarily flattering. She wanted women to see this painting to not only empathize with her, but in the hopes to empower them by pointing out the discrepancies between the equality of men and women in the 17th century. Her intention was to change the viewer’s perspective to tell a different story. This story focuses on the innocent and true Susanna whereas other stories of this painting focus on the sexualized Susanna. Gentileschi recognized the sexism she faced as a young woman and represented those experiences in her painting of Susanna and the Elders. This deeper meaning is revealed later on in her career as there is a consistent theme of feminism with all her paintings starting with Susanna and the Elders. 
  
  Gentileschi’s painting of Susanna and the Elders was a piece that defined her career in the beginning as it was made with passion to express herself, rather than a commission for a patron. Since it was her first painting, it showed a lot about her character and her intent for her future success. She wanted to embrace being a woman and also empower other women to do the same as well. Her portrayal of Susanna is pure and innocent while the portrayal of the men shows their true character and the constant power-hungry attitude that was normal in the 17th century. Men had a lack of control when they saw beautiful women and this caused a lot of trouble as women were seen as the sexualized object that caused men to act this way. Gentileschi wanted to depict her view of this particular story as it had not been viewed from a woman’s perspective before. It was brave of her to take on this challenge and to paint with an intent based off of an experience she had been through. As a feminist she wanted to change the story to make women feel equal and valued. This work shows a different side to art as it unveils a deeper meaning of the lack of power women had and how they were being viewed in society. Gentileschi visually depicted her feminist beliefs about a well-known story to challenge viewers to really think about the situation and dive into the deeper meaning there. 
  
  Artemisia Gentileschi was a passionate and dedicated woman painter who changed the art world for women in the early 17th century. She used her talent as a painter to express herself and create art that made the viewer change their perspective. She developed a style of storytelling through her paintings which led her to more opportunities and success. Her passion for feminism and fight against sexism can be seen in her work following Susanna and the Elders. Artemisia overcame many obstacles to get to where she did. She suffered but was able to speak out and express herself with her paintings if she could not with words. Throughout her career she grew to tell her story and her experiences so she could inspire women to strive for their dreams and goals if they so desired, and ultimately spread awareness of the problems in their patriarchal society.