I meant to do this a while ago, but better late than ever! Here are some more renditions of this famous story from the Old Testament. I like the one by Artemisia Gentileschi (Anne, this is the one you posted) but my personal favorite is the one where Judith's back is shown and it's so strong and determined. I never thought that a back could make a statement like that, but it does! I read once that in Rennaissance painting a lot of female figures were actually based on male models which were cheaper and more readily available. That would explain those muscular women, like the Michallangelo's Sibyls in the Capella Sistina.
Anyway, I could go on and on about Rennaissance art, which I adore. Here is a quick summary of the story of Judith and Holofernes; it has been taken up through the centuries as a metaphor for things ranging from womens lib to standing up against tyrannical polities:
Holofernes (Hebrew, הולופרנס) was an Assyrian[1] invading general of Nebuchadnezzar, who appears in the deuterocanonical Book of Judith. It was said that the Babylonian king Nebuchadnezzar dispatched Holofernes to take vengeance on the nations of the west that had withheld their assistance to his reign. The general laid siege to Bethulia, commonly believed to be Meselieh, and the city almost surrendered. It was saved by Judith, a beautiful Jewish widow who entered Holofernes's camp and seduced him. Judith then beheaded Holofernes while he was drunk. She returned to Bethulia with the disembodied head, and the Jews defeated the enemy. This can be interpreted as honey trap.
1 comment:
Thanks so much for this post Dr. M! I knew that it was a biblical story but I did not know it's exact details. I really like the pic that you put up with Judith's back facing the viewer, it is very strong and I agree that it does say a lot.
When I took humanities in high school I fell in love with the Artemsia Gentileschi one. The Renaissance was so male dominated that to see such a powerful painting from a women was like OMG! She's got some serious ______!
Anyway, so I hadn't forgotten about the painting but I was unable to find any prints of it so I just kind of pushed it to the back of my mind. A couple of years ago I went to Italy and we went to all the major cities (Rome, Florence, Venice, Milan) and of course I fell in love with Rome. But the next stop was Florence, and I kid you not when I say that it felt like my soul had returned home. I have NEVER been so taken aback by a city, which is why I have that fleur de lis tattoo on my forearm. There is a point to this story I swear. So, I'm in Florence and I go to the Uffizi gallery. I spend hours in there and I'm almost done when I enter this room with this enormous painting... Artemisa Gentileschi's Judith Beheading Holofernes! I was literally brought to tears. It's amazing how much art can move you sometimes.
-Anne
I also really like Hieronymus Bosch from the Dutch Renaissance movement. There is something so dark and eerie about his paintings that I love. I will put one up sometime. And there is one other painting specifically that I don't know who painted but I saw it in the Louvre. If I EVER find that one I am definitely putting it up. I've looked for it for years. : (
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