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Artemisia Gentileschi
Artemisia Gentileschi was one of the greatest female artists of the baroque age. A brilliant follower of the Caravaggio, she utilized his technique of chiaroscuro in her works. Modern critics have called her paintings the “real successors to Caravaggio with a muscular personality all their own.” However, as with most female artists she faced blatant sexism as well as other barriers despite her obvious talent. Born in Rome on July 8, 1593, Artemisia was the eldest child of Tuscan painter Orazio Gentileschi and his wife Prudentia Montone. As a child, she was drawn to her father’s workshop and showed more artistic talent than her brothers, a fact that did not…
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The insane genius of Richard Dadd
Born in Chatham, Kent, to a chemist in August 1817 or 1818, Richard Dadd was the fourth of between seven and nine children (sources vary). Details of his childhood are scant however it has been noted that he showed an adeptness for sketching and art from an early age, and was seen by those who knew him as a quiet gentle boy. Following his education at Kings School Rochester, at the age of 17, the family moved to London and at 20 years old, Richard was accepted into the Royal Academy of Arts. Towards the end of the 1830s, Dadd along with some of his contemporaries, including Frith, Egg and…
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Michelangelo and de’ Medici
Born to a family of minor nobility in Florence, Italy in 1475, Michelangelo Buonarroti became one of the world’s most famous artists. However, his path to artistic greatness was not smooth. His father sent him to study with an eminent Humanist, but Michelangelo copied the paintings on the walls of the church instead. At 13, he became an apprentice of painter Domenico Ghirlandiao. Unusual for the time, Ghirlandiao paid the Buonarroti family for the apprenticeship not the other way around. This had to be due to the burgeoning talent of young Michelangelo. When Lorenzo de’ Medici requested two of Ghirlandiao’s most promising students, Michelangelo was sent to study at the…
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Death of Leonardo da Vinci
Leonardo di Ser Piero da Vinci (Leonardo, son of Mr Piero of Vinci) was born in Vinci on 15th April 1452. His father was Messer Piero Frousino di Antonio da Vinci, a wealthy notary and gentleman of the area. His mother was a local peasant girl, Caterina. For the first few years of his life, Leonardo lived with his mother in Anchiano, but at the age of five went to live with his father, uncle and grandparents. His father had recently married a 16 year old girl, Albeira who died a few years later. His father married again, this time to a 20 year old, Francesca Lanfredini, Leonardo was 16…
