Artemisia Gentileschi was an artist of remarkable qualities: the first woman who managed to live exclusively by her brush and who refused to be bound by the conventions usually imposed on female artists. In a time when still-life painting and portraiture were the genres deemed proper for a woman, Artemisia created impressive history paintings. The Metropolitan Museum's Esther before Ahasuerus is one such painting.

This short account of Artemisia and her painting is taken from text prepared for "Orazio and Artemisia Gentileschi: Father and Daughter Painters in Baroque Italy" (February 14, 2002–May 12, 2002)—the first full-scale exhibition devoted to Artemisia and her father, Caravaggio's most gifted and individual follower—and the exhibition catalogue, Orazio and Artemisia Gentileschi (Keith Christiansen, Judith Mann, et al. 2001).

The exhibition is made possible in part by the Gail and Parker Gilbert Fund.

Additional support has been provided by a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts.

The exhibition has been organized by the Soprintendenza per i Beni Artistici, Rome, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, and the Saint Louis Art Museum.

An indemnity has been granted by the Federal Council on the Arts and the Humanities.

The exhibition catalogue is made possible by the Doris Duke Fund for Publications.

Learn more about Artemisia and read the story of Esther.