Gentileschi's Take on Veronese

Because of the similar elements between Paolo Veronese's Esther Before Ahasuerus and Artemisia Gentileschi's Esther Before Ahasuerus, many art scholars have concluded that Artemisia's painting was based off of Veronese's painting. However, the differences between the two are more significant. The distinctions between the two paintings show that Artemisia paid more attention to Esther, the main character of Artemisia's painting, and her bravery, depicting a more egalitarian relationship between the King and Queen. On the other hand, Veronese's painting reveals that he was more interested in illustrating the absolute power of King Ahasuerus over Esther. The comparison between Veronese's painting and Artemisia's painting clearly shows the new, feminist perspectives that Artemisia brings to age-old Biblical and ancient stories of famous heroines. The similarities and the differences between the two paintings, as well as their implications, are noted in the image annotations.