Artemisia Gentileschi, Danaë, 1612. Oil on copper; 16 ¼ x 20 ¾ in. Saint Louis Art Museum, 93:1986. Courtesy photo.
SANTA BARBARA — Santa Barbara Museum of Art to present “Art Matters Lecture with Judith Mann Senior Curator of European Art to 1800, Saint Louis Art Museum” at 5:30 p.m. Thursday, March 7 at SBMA’s Mary Craig Auditorium, 1130 State St., Santa Barbara.
Over the last 75 years, Artemisia Gentileschi has developed into an icon of female empowerment and the emotive drama of baroque painting. Identified with images of Judith decapitating the general Holofernes, she has come to be understood as a woman who succeeded in a man’s world, overcoming considerable obstacles to do so. While not entirely inaccurate, such an understanding fails to address the reality of the artist’s life in 17th-century Italian society, and has caused her less dramatic paintings to remain misunderstood or overlooked. Dr. Mann discusses seven of the artists’ paintings, including well-known titles such as Susanna and the Elders along with a series of works that have come to light within the last 20 years.
Location: SBMA’s Mary Craig Auditorium, 1130 State Street, Santa Barbara
Free Students and Museum Circle Members/$10 SBMA Members/$15 Non-Members
Get tickets at tickets.sbma.net