Orazio Gentileschi at the Court of Charles I

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Orazio Gentileschi (1563-1639) was one the most internationally successful painters of the 17th century. In 1626 he travelled to London to enter the service of Charles I, a remarkable collector and patron who was keen to adorn his court with distinguished artists. This book, focusing on the years he spent working for the English Court, contains research and a full account of his artistic activities while in England. While "Picture Maker to His Majesty", Gentileschi painted some of his grandest and most luminous pictures, including "Joseph and Potiphar's Wife", "Lot and his Daughters" and two versions of the "Finding Moses" - for Charles I and Philip IV of Spain. Several of these canvases hung in the Queen's House at Greenwich, the beautiful Italianate villa built by Inigo Jones, where Gentileschi also painted a sumptuous ceiling showing "An Allegory of Peace and the Arts". Here, three essays explore the achievements of Gentileschi's English years. Gabriele Finaldi discusses the artist's work for the King and Queen; Aidan Weston-Lewis examines his two versions of "The Finding of Moses"; and Ana Sanchez-Lassa de los Santos discusses technical aspects of Gentileschi's English paintings.