Rediscovered Artemisia masterpiece displayed at Windsor Castle

Susannah and the Elders

The rediscovery of a lost masterpiece by Artemisa Gentileschi in the Royal Collection after 200 years, caused great excitement. After extensive restoration it is now displayed in the State Apartments at Windsor Castle. The Queen's Withdrawing Room features her famous 'Self-Portrait as the Allegory of Painting,' known as 'La Pittura' and 'Joseph and Potiphar's Wife' by her father, Orazio, alongside the re-found 'Susanna and the Elders.'

Artemisia's Allegory of Painting is a powerful exposition of the artist at work. She wears a gold chain around her neck with a mask to show skill at imitation. Her vibrant green dress depicts a mastery of colour, and her dishevelled hair indicates creative passion.

Two Van Dycks of Henrietta Maria, Charles I's queen, who commissioned 'Susannah and the Elders', hang on the walls opposite alongside distinctive portraits of her husband and other Stuarts. Inventories indicate the painting originally hung over a new fireplace in the Queen's apartments at the Palace of Whitehall. It was considered the Queen's own picture.

Sold in 1651 the painting was returned to Charles II after the Restoration and hung at Somerset House, Henrietta Maria's home until 1665 and then of Catherine of Braganza, his consort.

Later moved to Kensington Palace its attribution was lost. A watercolour of 1819 depicts the painting leaning against a wall in Queen Caroline's bedchamber. Removed to Hampton Court Palace the frame disappeared. Misattributed to a minor male artist and then later 'French School' the painting deteriorated. In 1862 restoration work applied thick layers of varnish and paint, making it barely recognisable.

Painstaking conservation has now restored Artemisia's lost masterpiece to its former glory. The initials CR were found on the back indicating it's provenance.

Susanna and the Elders was painted c1638-9 when Artemisia joined her father Orazio at the court of King Charles 1. She assisted Orazio in completing the ceiling of the Queen's House, Greenwich. He died in in 1639 and she returned to Italy in1640. She painted seven pictures for the Royal Collection, of which it seemed only La Pittura survived the Civil War.

Described in the Old Testament, Susanna was a virtuous wife spied upon by two predatory men whilst bathing in her garden. They attempted to blackmail her when she rebuts their advances, alleging infidelity with them. The prophet Daniel reveals disparity in their accounts proving her innocence.

Artemisia painted the story several times, the first aged 17 in 1610 and it was the topic of her last painting in her prodigious 40-year career. She broke the mould by portraying Susanna's perspective rather than the voyeuristic Elders. The restored picture is one of the finest.

Conveying an air of menace, the Elders, one balding and the other with a turbaned head, lean leering over a low wall whilst a vulnerable Susanna descending stone steps towards the water, turns anxiously away from them. Clutching her towel about her, she attempts to shield herself from them. A cascading fountain is at the side with trees behind. Earlier versions do not depict the landscape. Elements such as the Elders heads and Susanna's face had been used in other earlier works. She is thought to have travelled with a stock of drawings to create new compositions.

Trained alongside her brothers under her father's tutelage, her talent surpassed them all. One of her father's pupils, Augustino Tassi, assisted by another man brutally raped her. Trial details reveal Artemisa's ordeal and subjection to torture to prove the veracity of her account. Her experiences surely influenced her painting of Susannah.

Born in 1593 in Rome, she was considered one of the greatest artists of her time, and was much in demand across Europe securing royal and aristocratic patronages She was the first woman to become a member of Florence's Academy of Art.

Artemisa fell out of favour in the eighteenth century and nineteenth century. In recent years her artistry is once more appreciated, especially her powerful, empathetic depictions of biblical, historical, and mythological women. She herself said, "You will find the spirIt of Caesar in the soul of a woman!"

A distinctive pearl drop earring hangs from Susanna's visible ear, resembling those worn by the queen in the Van Dyck portraits opposite They were a cherished gift from her parents, King Henry IV of France, and Marie de Medici, on her marriage to Charles. Pearls symbolise innocence and purity, affirming Susanna's virtue, but perhaps also a tribute to Artemisia's patron, the Queen, who had a keen eye for art.

Anna Reynolds, Deputy Surveyor of the Kings' Pictures, said "Artemisia was a strong, dynamic and exceptionally talented artist whose female subjects-including Susanna-look at you from their canvases with the same determination to make their voices heard that Artemisia showed in the male dominated art world of the 17th.century."

Until 29 April 2024 Thursdays-Monday

included with Castle tour admission charges.

See: www.rct.uk for details.