Which artist painted the image in the picture?

The artist who painted the image in the picture was Artemisia Gentileschi. It is a self-portrait called the 'Allegory of Painting'. The artist developed a truly public persona. It was one based not only on her work but also on the scandal that dominated her biography. In 1612, Gentileschi charged her painting instructor Agostino Tassi with rape. A highly publicized 7-month trial ensued. The notorious trial did not dissuade the noble class from buying her works of art. Gentileschi’s theatrical and often violent subjects, such as 'Judith Slaying Holofernes' (c. 1612-13), showing the biblical heroine Judith and her maidservant overpowering a tyrant, lent themselves to interpretations that looked at Artemisia's rape.

Due to her mother's efforts, Artemisia revelled in painting the great heroines of the Bible. Although she could not read, her mother had made sure that she knew stories from the Bible. All of the artists before her had portrayed Judith and Susanna as mild and pleasant, but Artemisia felt that she knew their fear and anger. She painted their true emotions onto her canvases. It was her father who decided to nurture her gift; he hired an artist to teach her perspective. Artemisia fell in love and thought her teacher had finally proposed marriage to her. He, however, was proposing and did something else.

Art critics found that she had a psychological approach to depicting works of art; Artemisia Gentileschi defied the conventional role for women artists.