Artemisia, the painter

Alexandra Lapierre is the latest author i have discovered by chance, stumbling upon her biography of William Petty, Voleur d'Eternié, in the Aubannes refuge on Wildhorn traverse this winter. Afterwards, I found the book in my belgian library, and was pleasantly surprised by its style of writing, plot, and historic content. As i just finished reading Diwo's biography of Rubens, and was not exactly pleasantly surprised in this case, Lapierre came as a reward. Exciting adventures, brilliant writing and enticing plot makes this a quick read for the lovers of historic novels who enjoy painting as a by-product.

To continue, I picked up her Artemisia book, even more interesting and compelling. It tells the story of Artemisia Gentileschi, who managed a career as a painter in the beginning of the flamboyant 17th century Rome. Aremisia's paintings that I have never seen or maybe noticed before, are impressive - starting with her auto-portrait below:

Following Caravaggio's naturalism and desplaying the depth of her feelings with her brush, Artemisia has nothing to envy from her contemporaries, such as Velasquez or Rembrandt:

So much in this world to explore, learn and see! A trip to Rome smells like another must at some point!