Assignment #4

• Artemisia Gentileschi was one of the most well-known artist in the seventieth century. She was born in Italian, Rome in 1593.  This particular work of art is “Esther before Ahasuerus”. This painting represents Esther a women who is risking her life to appear upon her king for her people. She broke the court etiquette and fainted when she witnessed the king. The Renaissance is a known time in history literally called rebirth. In the Renaissance was a period in time of new and in some cases renewed understanding that transformed the medieval European world, which laid the foundation for modern society. The artist of these times used an artistic movement that truly showed how beautiful the human body is. Humanism is the interests, achievements, and capabilities of human beings.  

• In the Baroque period their art showed more innovative uses of space and more intense ranges of light and shadow. The artist used frequent use of curves and counter curves. In their paintings they appeal to emotions first in some cases. In certain paintings in Baroque art they used a new degree of vivid realism in compositions using sharp diagonals and extreme foreshortening.  Most of the Baroque style was created from Counter-Reformation, the Roman Catholic Church’s response to the Protestant Reformation. Peter Paul Rubens was born in Flemish, Siegen he was an outstanding artist. In this painting “Rubens, His Wife Helena Fourment” there are in the garden of love with his second wife and one of his beloved first children.  This is not a family portrait because Helena his wife most important attributes was providing him with a son. The two male figures gestures and glances at Helena to symbolize fecundity. She has elegance of an innocence and serenity of a female saint.