Essay on Compare and Contrast Caravaggio and Gentileschi

Michelangelo da Caravaggios David with the Head of Goliath and Artemisia Gentileschis Judith and Maidservant with the Head of Holofernes The period of Baroque art was from 1600 to 1750, and relates to the style of architecture and art that was dominant at that time. Rome was the center of this new style that reï ¬â€šected the Counter Reformation; the Church was regrouping during this period, and was trying to build up its patronage by bringing people back to worship after the Reformation. In much of the art during this time, the papacy commissioned artists to lavishly restore Rome in the hope that Rome would become the most beautiful city that would attract Christians. Meanwhile, in the rest of the world, William Shakespeare†¦show more content†¦Her father was a painter named Orazio Gentileschi, who taught her how to draw and paint. Inï ¬â€šuenced by Caravaggios work, Gentileschi also used chiaroscuro in her work and created beautifully dramatic pieces. Like Caravaggio, she also was able to depict a moment of elevated drama in her work and was totally capable of emphasizing it. In the time that she lived, women generally were not painters; very few women even attempted it, but Gentileschi was the ï ¬ rst woman to actually become a member of the prestigious Accademia di Arte Disegno in Florence, Italy and to paint important historical and religious paintings that were actually praised and viewed as an integral part of the artistic movement. Both Gentileschi and Caravaggio painted unconventional religious subjects; two paintings of similar themes are Caravaggios David with the Head of Goliath, (c.1610), and Gentileschis Judith and Maidservant with the Head of Holofernes (c. 1625). Both paintings evoke drama and use the technique of chiaroscuro to add effective intensity to the story of their paintings, which entail the heroic and rather gruesome removal of someones head. The subject of Gentileschis painting comes from the Book of Judith and relates the story of Holofernes who attacked the Jewish people of Bethulia; Judith, who was a beautiful Hebrew widow that may have been raped by Holoferenes, entered Holoferness camp and beheaded him while he wasShow MoreRelatedThe Renaissance Period And Artemisia Gentileschi Of The Baroque Period2173 Words   |  9 Pagesworks of Michelangelo or Caravaggio might be evoked. In fact, most paintings one may think of would have been completed by men. Most of the art movements in the western world were in fact lead and contributed to by men, especially in the Renaissance and Baroque period. Even though art as a profession in these time periods was dominated by male artists, female artists did, in fact, make significant contributions to their respective art movements. This paper will discuss and compare the lives and works