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Women's Fiction
The Passion of Artemisia

The Passion of Artemisia

List Price: $36.95
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Product Info Reviews

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Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Brushstrokes that paint a stunning portrait of a trailblazer
Review: "The Passion of Artemisia" follows the earlier success of Susan Vreeland's masterful "Girl in Hyacinth Blue," an artistic novel that followed the generations of Dutch owners of a lost Vermeer masterpiece. In "Artemisia" Vreeland captures the nuances of Baroque Italy, along with the challenges of being a fiercely independent, talented female painter in a man's world.

Artemisia Gentileschi lived in Baroque Italy (1593-1652). The daughter of Orazio Gentileschi, she studied with him and with the landscape painter Agostino Tassi. In 1616 she joined the Academy of Design in Florence and began to develop a powerful style of her own. She was one of the greatest of Caravaggio's followers and the most violent, arguably as a result of her rape by Tassi and the trial at which she was forced under torture to give evidence against him. She favored such subjects as Judith beheading Holofernes and other images of heroic women. She worked in Rome and Naples, and spent three years with her father in London (1638-41). The first woman artist to attain an international reputation, she is admired today as the earliest to show a feminist consciousness in her work.

Vreeland's Artemisia struggles to come to grips with her traumatic rape and subsequent Inquisition trial, an early event that recurs throughout the novel, as well as balancing being a wife, mother, and painter. Along the way she suffers heartbreak, scorn, and self-doubt in her quest to become the first female painter admitted to the Academy of Design in Florence. The novel is ripe with detail, and is better enjoyed if you view the actual paintings (hint: search online, there are many excellent photos of the works mentioned in the novel) while you read. A thoughtful novel that will engage your senses and your heart.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: A novel of Moral Consequence
Review: Artemisia Gentileschi, born in 1593 was an artist of great import in 17th century Rome. In her teens she was raped by a friend of her father, setting her painting on a course that showed not only Rome and Italy, but a world of pain as well as the strength she emanated. Her paintings wreak havoc on the senses. Her women are portrayed as independent and strong, something unheard of in this period. She was the first woman to be recognized in the male dominated world of art.

Artemisia spends time with Galileo, an apt pupil to his musings on the theory that the Earth orbits around the sun, a blasphemous idea at the time, for which Galileo was placed under house arrest. He found her to have a meditative mind with a different perspective. She was a woman with vision and was admitted to the Academy of Sciences in Florence, an unprecedented happening for a female painter.

This book is beautifully written. It is a story of healing and forgiveness. Her relationships with her father, daughter and even the husband that is so often absent are developed to perfection. This is a fictitious account of her life and should be read as such. Another book that I enjoyed by this author is GIRL IN HYACINTH BLUE. Kelsana 7/23/02

Rating: 2 stars
Summary: Fascinating Subject, Poor Writing
Review: I bought this book believing I would really, really love it. I love art, I love Italy, so...what was there not to love?

The Passion of Artemisia is the story of Artemisia Gentileschi, born in Rome in 1593. After the death of her mother, Artemisia was raised by her father, who was himself, an artist. Vreeland tells us that the book is, for the most part, historically accurate, and I have no reason to doubt her veracity. However, the historical portions, the descriptions of the art and the cities, etc., make up the only interesting parts of the book.

When the book opens, Artemisia is a girl of eighteen who stands at the center of a rape trial. Artemisia wants to see justice done, but her father has other ideas and other things on his mind and Artemisia is left ruined and unmarriageable.

Although unmarriageable, Artemisia does wed and only about a year later as well. The union is a relatively happy and peaceful one and her husband, also a painter, takes her to his native Florence where they both pursue their vocation until Artemisia gives birth to a daughter.

When Artemisia clearly proves to be the superior painter, her harmonious relationship she has enjoyed with her husband ends and she eventually leaves him, taking their daughter with her. She travels first to Genoa, then to Rome, then to Naples. She is determined to support both herself and her child as a painter, no matter how much society is against the idea.

Artemisia Gentileschi was a fascinating woman. She was the first woman admitted to the Florentine Academy, she was a woman who lived apart from her husband at a time when living apart from one's husband was virtually unknown. She moved in the same social circles as the Medicis and the other families of the Italian nobility. Artemisia was, as the title of the book, suggests, a passionate woman. So, what is the problem here?

The problem with this book is twofold. First, the character of Artemisia, as painted by Vreeland, is both dull and flat. Instead of giving us a fascinating character, Vreeland seems to be using Artemisia as a vehicle through which to give us her views of the issues of Renaissance Italy. Artemisia "talks" at length about science, art, religion and politics, but her views are not those of a passionate artist, they are the views of someone totally detached from the day-to-day life of the times. Unfortunately, we learn nothing about Artemisia's passion for her art, for her husband, for her child, for her homeland. This is the story of a cold and cerebral woman, not a passionate, life-affirming one. It is only when Artemisia is analyzing the painting of others that she becomes in the least bit interesting as a human being.

The second thing wrong with this book is the poor quality of the writing. The narrative prose is just awful. It is a mystery to me why Vreeland wrote this way and even more of a mystery as to why her editor (or even a first reader) didn't catch (and fix) the problems. Wherever the fault lies, there is simply no excuse to foist bad narrative prose on the book-buying public. It is really unforgiveable.

Artemisia Gentileschi was a fascinating and passionate woman. She certainly deserved better than this.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: A Masterpiece
Review: I had never heard of Artemisia Gentileschi until I opened this book. I realize that it is a fictitious account of her life, but it made for an interesting read.

Set in the 17th century, the story opens with Artemisia having been raped by her father's assistant, Agostino Tassi. Her father has accused him of this rape and sets into motion a trial that will continue to haunt Artemisia for the rest of her days. The rapist is released and Artemisia, her reputation ruined, is forced into an arranged marriage.

She begins to paint her collection, most notably her "Judith" collection. Her art becomes famous with the most renowned people of her day. She portrays the women in her paintings as strong and independent, retribution being the key. I found Vreeland's account of how the paintings came about and why to be extremely interesting. Artemisia soon becomes the first woman to be accepted into the Academy of Sciences in Florence and this causes a rift in her marriage.

The people along the way are also wonderful characters brought to life, especially Graziela who is wise beyond her years and helps to put things into perspective for Artemisia. Her passion for painting brought her the utmost joy and pain. A lesson not lost on Artemisia.

I was so fascinated by Artemisia's story that I looked on the internet for her paintings and was not disappointed. I discovered a few inconsistencies in the story and the real life of this painter, but overall I think the book is worth the read.

Another book similar in theme to this one is Girl with a Pearl Earring by Tracy Chevalier.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Captivating!
Review: I had studied Artemisia in a Women's Art History class in college, so I had some idea about her biography. And I think Vreeland did an amazing job of stringing out a believable tale of what her life was really like. This book really captured the essence of "Judith" and offered a believable account of what Artemisia must have been thinking when she painted it. It's the only Susan Vreeland book I've read (and the least known, unfortunately!), and I can't wait to read another! I couldn't put this one down!

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: A good novel and art psychoanalysis piece
Review: Similar to Tracy Chevalier's Girl With a Pearl Earring, Susan Vreeland creates character based on what she interprets in Artemisia Gentileschi's artwork. Vreeland is greatly aided by her real-life heroine's well-documented rape, and therefore it's easy to make the connection that her art would frequently be disquieting and violent. Vreeland intelligently concludes that this violence (in the depiction of blood, severed heads, and daggers) may be the reason that Artemisia's own daughter was repelled by her mother's art as a child. Here, Vreeland should be credited with the "invenzione" she bestows on her subject.

Artists frequently reflect that art is a lonely lifestyle, and Vreeland portrays the conflict between living for one's art and living for love. Artemisia fairly often comes across as self-absorbed, and then is later stunned when her husband or daughter rejects her in some form. It is probably a realistic if not wholly sympathetic portrayal. Occasionally, Vreeland interferes with her character by putting modern thoughts into her seventeenth century characters' heads. ("Let them wonder about that for centuries," Artemisia muses) Certainly a worthwhile read for art lovers, and also, I feel, a book that can generate discussion of the conflict of love and loyalty versus pursuit of one's art and independence. Excellent for book groups.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: An exquisitely written and highly accurate biography!
Review: The Passion of Artemisia is a rare example of a well-written biographical novel. It tells the story of post-Renaissance painter Artemisia Gentileschi's life with a balanced mixture of fact and fiction. The author, Susan Vreeland, reveals this magnificently talented and complex woman with such ease, it is as though she were there with Artemisia as the events of her life unraveled. Set in cities of Italy and England, this story gives the factual sequence of events in her life and the rollercoaster of pain and ecstasy she must have felt throughout her many triumphs and tragedies. Beginning in Rome, the artist's birthplace and also the site of her infamously horrible rape and degrading trial, the story then continues throughout Italy as Artemisia makes her way into the hearts of Italy's highest nobility and even the great Galileo Galilei, never letting her crumbling marriage of convenience or society's sexual bias discourage her from achieving her dreams. The novel ends in England, where the artist is reunited with her aging father, renowned painter Orazio Gentileschi, and a lasting peace between them may finally be realized after years of bad blood. This is the story of a true heroine, a woman who was not willing to let anybody or anything come between her and her dream. Vreeland uses her extraordinary talents to portray her subject as someone both easily related to and hard to forget. Artemisia truly inspires with her courage and her ability to continually pick herself up after she faces many knock-downs. The Passion of Artemisia is full of touching moments that linger in the reader's mind. With this novel Susan Vreeland ensures that Artemisia will be remembered just as she was: a passionate artist and intelligent woman.

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: (3.5)The woman who wouldn't stay in her place...
Review: There are two recent novels about the life of Artemisia Gentileschi, the daughter of a prominent artist, who became an artist in her own right. I chose to read The Passion of Artemisia by Susan Vreeland, the author of The Girl in Hyacinth Blue, also set in the rarified world of artists. Early in the 17th Century, men dominated the art world, painting in the Baroque style, with emphasis on light and shadow. Artemisia is notable for her memorable and complicated paintings, but even more infamous for taking her father's best friend, Agostino Tassi, to court, charging him with rape. Unfortunately the male-dominated court of the Inquisition put her on trial and it was her reputation that suffered.

Vreeland's prose acquires the nuanced perspective of the artist and her personal and imaginative perspective of the world around her. The author captures details that carry the ring of truth, as seen through Artemisia's eyes: "A dusty beam from a high window fell on his hands and lightened the fold of his sleeve to lavender." Another: "...a small man swathed in deep purple was sharpening his quills with a knife, letting the shavings fall to the floor." Simple observations, really, but I immediately trusted Vreeland to portray the story with a visual perspective.

In society at the time, successful artists were revered, especially when favored by Church patrons who were intent upon establishing the Church of Rome as a jewel in the eyes of a world beset by heresy. In accusing Tassi of rape, Artemisia took on the male hierarchical establishment and the ponderous weight of the Church, but she refused to dishonor herself and back down, even when tortured by her Inquisitors. Even witnesses were fodder for torture in trials, in order to ascertain truthfulness and expose liars. Circumstances were complicated by the fact that Agostino Tassi was Artemisia's father's best friend and the two often collaborated on projects, Tassi painting the architecture and Orazio the human figures.

After the trial, Artemisia was married quietly to an obscure painter and moved to Florence, where she and her new husband painted together. This young woman couldn't exist in the narrow space society allowed, driven to create her own interpretations of historical, predominantly Biblical, subjects. Artemisia found a patron willing to sponsor her, and left Florence with her young daughter, leaving her husband on his own. An extraordinary and talented woman, Artemisia was an aberration in the society that formed her. But Vreeland's novel ultimately disappoints, following Artemisia's tumultuous life with no well-planned ending to the story. All the energy is in the first few chapters, the drama of the rape trial and the undeniable drive to live as an artist. By the ending, the "Passion of Artemisia" seems to have dissipated...

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Italian canvas
Review: This book certainly hooks you in early. I couldn't put it down and I knew nothing of the real Artemisia Gentileschi, so I had no other story to compare to. I found this book fulfilling in some places and disappointing in others. I can see with Susan Vreeland's description all the beauty of seventeenth century Italy; Rome, Florence, Naples, Genoa, she paints a vivid portrait of a struggling and talented woman.
While some places I thought came off the pages and touched me, others left me hanging and a little sad. I don't really think she had a rich life just for her wonderful paintings, what about love? She never did have love. Arranged marriage, a womanizing cheater for a husband, befriends a distinguished man and yet nothing more than friendship blossoms. She lives her entire life as a struggling painter working for comissions and taking care of her daughter. I was rooting for Artemisia, I was hoping since life hadn't been so great to her, something was going to turn around in her favor.
It isn't a bad story, it should be read at least once, it has some beautiful lines and some great characters. I liked it, but had Susan Vreeland made the character a little more anxious about love and attaining love, perhaps I would have liked it even more.


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