One rainy day in February 1615 an elaborate performance took place in the Pitti Palace , called “ Dance of the Gypsy Women ,” written by Francesca Caccini . A certain “ Sig . ra Artemisia ” was one of the gypsy women . Evidence , too detailed to recount here , strongly suggests that the actor in the self-portrait was not a courtesan , as has been suggested , but herself attired as the gypsy in the performance in which she had taken part . 13 Interestingly , Artemisia ’ s left hand forms a real chord on the lute : the E flat 7 chord . 14
Artemisia Gentileschi ( 1593-1653 )
The most famous of Artemisia ’ s self-portraits , this is probably the most written about and best documented . Her true hair color was auburn and she would have changed it to black here to fit standard iconography for the allegory of painting : “ A beautiful woman with black hair .”
But how do we know what the real Artemisia Gentileschi looked like ? Male admirers in her time thought she not only painted beautifully but also was herself a great beauty . She painted a number of self-portraits , some for patrons . Scholars have considered that she used her own likeness for female protagonists in other paintings . Three depictions of her facial features by other artists are pertinent here : an engraving after a lost self-portrait , a bronze medal in profile , and a very recently discovered portrait by Simon Vouet of Artemisia Lomi Gentileschi ( Lomi is the Tuscan family name she used while in Florence ).
Readers can compare the several “ self-portraits ” figured here and decide for themselves . As for me , I admire the woman I think I ’ ve begun to meet as an artist among artists : highly skilled in her craft , innovative , ambitious and competitive yet also collaborative among her peers , highly intelligent , multifaceted , with wit and a lively personality — in short , to borrow from W . B . Yeats , “ the pilgrim soul ” in her .
Artemisia Gentileschi ( 1593-1653 ) Self-Portrait as the Allegory of Painting
1638-1639 oil on canvas 39 x 29 1 / 2 ”
Royal Collection , United Kingdom
( Endnotes )
1 Keith Christiansen and Judith W . Mann . Orazio and Artemisia Gentileschi . Yale University Press ; 2001 . 2 Judith W . Mann , ed . Artemisia Gentileschi : Taking Stock . Turnhout : Brepols Publishers ; 2005 . 3 Sheila Barker , ed . Artemisia Gentileschi in a Changing Light , London ; Turnhout Harvey Mille 4 Mary D . Garrard . “ Identifying Artemisia : The Archive and the Eye ” in Changing Light , p . 13 . 5 “ A new document concerning Artemisia Gentileschi ’ s marriage .” The Burlington Magazine , CLVI , December ; 2014 , pp . 803-804 . 6 Sheila Barker . “ Artemisia ’ s Money : The Entrepreneurship of a Woman Artist in Seventeenth-Century Florence ,” In Changing Light , pp . 59-88 . 7 Ibid . See the section entitled “ Luxurious Living as a Business Strategy ,” pp . 65-66 . 8 Of course it is also clear that Artemisia loved and excelled at painting exquisite fabrics and draperies , as did her father , which is one reason I derive inspiration from the Gentileschi . 9 Ibid . p . 65 . 10 Ibid . And note 78 , p . 85 . 11 Jesse Locker . “ Artemisia Gentileschi : The Literary Formation of an Unlearned Artist ” in ed . Sheila Barker . Artemisia Gentileschi in a Changing Light , London ; Turnhout Harvey Mille ;
2017 pp . 89-101 . 12 Ibid . pp . 90-91 . 13 Jesse M . Locker . Artemisia Gentileschi : The Language of Painting . Yale University Press ; 2015 . pp . 136-142 . 14 Richard Savino . Personal communication . Also see El Mundo : What Artemisia Heard : Music and Art from the Time of Caravaggio and Gentileschi , directed by Richard Savino . This music CD contains period performances of music from the cities in which Artemisia lived , including works by Francesca Caccini .
40 ART CHOWDER MAGAZINE