Artemisia Gentileschi (1593-1656) began to paint professionally in her father’s workshop when she was only 17, going on to become a very talented Italian Baroque painter. Unfortunately, as she was a woman it took time for her to be accepted into the artistic world. But her work was incredible! Over her life she was a patron of the famed Medici family, traveled around Europe, and focussed her work on classical, Biblical, and mythological women.
Painted in 1615, Self-portrait as a Female Martyr is a Baroque self-portrait that Gentileschi made when she was only 22. Unlike her usual work centered around mythical women, this shows her own image holding a long quill. This is almost a statement piece from a time where women were rarely painters, showing that Gentileschi belonged in that world.