Undergraduate Art History Thesis

Rembrandt and Artemisia Gentileschi – Exceptional Portrayals of the Female Nude

Introduction:

It is not difficult to determine that the paintings of Rembrandt are different from those of his contemporaries. Many factors explain how the young artist of the early 17th century produced paintings of female nudes with an unusually psychological dimension so that the female character seems less interested in being the subject of the male viewer and more interested in being an independent and thoroughly individualized woman. A combination of circumstances may explain Rembrandt’s unique approach, the influence of Italian artists in particular. The early female nudes of Rembrandt are comparable to those of Florentine Artemisia Gentileschi in that not only did they deviate from traditional representations of women but did so in a way that empathized with the female subject. They explored the female nude in a more intimate manner, so she is removed from her role as serving the male viewer and therefore becomes elevated, independent and approachable. Rembrandt may have come into contact with reproductions and possibly examples of Gentileschi’s work which seem to have been inspiration for his own paintings. To demonstrate that Rembrandt may have adopted the style of Artemisia for his female subjects this essay will identify the connections between the two artists in order to legitimize their similarities, demonstrate their distinct separation from predecessors and contemporaries such as Rubens, and discuss their similar empathetic responses toward the female subject.

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