This bio came from a website
Artemisia Gentileschi (1593 - 1652/1653 was one of the first women artists to achieve recognition in the male-dominated world of post-Renaissance art. In an era when female artists were limited to portrait painting and imitative poses, she was the first woman to paint major historical and religious scenarios. She received her early training from her father, but after art academies rejected her, she continued study under a friend of her father, Agostino Tassi. In 1612, her father brought suit against Tassi for raping Artemisia. There followed a highly publicised seven-month trial.
The trauma of the rape and trial impacted on Artemisia's painting. The heroines of her art, especially Judith, are powerful women exacting revenge on such male evildoers as the Assyrian general Holofernes.
After her death, she drifted into obscurity, her works often attributed to her father or other (sic. male) artists.
There are 2 museums which have some of her works. The Galleria degli Uffizi and the Casa Buonarroti. Both of them are marked on the map. Perhaps I will find more women artists and more instances of Artemisia Gentilesch's work once I get to Florence..
