The plot and artistic embodiment of Artemisia Gentileschi's painting "Judith Beheading Olofernus" through the prism of the artist's life circumstances

Abstract

The article describes the early life of the Italian Baroque artist Artemisia Gentileschi.

The main purpose of the study is to determine how the tragic circumstances of Artemisia's personal life influenced the formation and further artistic achievements of the young artist.

In writing the article, the principles and methods of historical and anthropological research were used in combination with biographical, historical and comparative, iconographic, figurative, and stylistic methods. Among the historical and anthropological methods, the principle of anthropological interpretation and reduction is used, on the basis of which Gentileschi's work is analyzed as a way of self-objectification of the artist, and the principle of extrapolating a single fact from the artist's life to the anthropological interpretation of her works. The biographical method was used when working with biographical data, while iconographic and figurative-stylistic methods were used to study the attribution of works and analyze artistic visual means.

The study is based on a detailed analysis of two early works by Artemisia Gentileschi: Susanna and the Elders and Judith Beheading Olofernus. The article touches upon the attribution and dating of the paintings, the non-randomness of the choice of the storylines, and the specific interpretation of the depicted elements on the canvases. The conclusion is made about the uniqueness of Artemisia's interpretation of iconographic canons and images in biblical stories. In her works, she tries to present her heroines not as passive objects from the male point of view, which were traditionally represented on the canvases of that time, but as purposeful individuals capable of making their own decisions. She portrayed them in a completely different way, giving them a power that other artists did not.

Summing up the results of the research, the author concludes with their own assessment of Artemisia Gentileschi's works through the prism of the artist's life circumstances. It is argued that the subjects chosen by the artist for artistic embodiment reflect her own experience of emotional and sexual violence, public trial, contradictory testimonies, too lenient punishment for the rapist, and, finally, a kind of indifference and self-interest from her father towards his daughter. The study of psychological trauma is firmly established as a legitimate field of research. The example of Artemisia Gentileschi clearly demonstrates the fact that art can be used as a way of reflection, and the current situation with the growth of psychological traumas of various kinds in society requires a comprehensive search for various ways to overcome traumatic conditions in society.