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Kathleen Gilje , b. 1945

Susanna and the Elders, Restored

1998
67 in. x 47 in. (170.18 cm x 119.38 cm)

Medium and Support: Oil on linen and fifteen sheets of x-ray film mounted on plexiglass

Credit Line: Museum purchase

Accession Number: 2011.49a,b

Commentary

Rooted in traditional materials and techniques, the artistic practice of Kathleen Gilje reinterprets female historic subjects through a feminist lens. In this instance, the biblical tale of Susanna and the Elders—particularly as portrayed by seventeenth-century Italian painter Artemisia Gentileschi—is ‘restored.’ While faithfully adopting the pigments of the early seventeenth century, Gilje recreated Gentileschi’s canvas, but inserted pivotal new elements into the composition, under the guise of pentimenti or alterations. Specifically, the knife, which appears only faintly in the painting but prominently in the x-ray, recasts the previously victimized Susanna in the role of avenger, who defends herself against the elders. Beyond reflecting the artist’s own sympathetic disposition toward the protagonist, her reinterpretation of this often depicted story also makes reference to the biographical parallel between Susanna and Gentileschi; by arming Susanna’s hand, Gilje allows Gentileschi to retroactively avenge the rape by elders she herself suffered at age nineteen.

Exhibition List

This object was included in the following exhibitions:

Revised and Restored: The Art of Kathleen Gilje Bruce Museum , 5/11/2013 - 9/8/2013
Past Is Prologue: History in Contemporary Art Addison Gallery of American Art , 4/16/2022 - 7/31/2022
SUSANNA - Images of a Woman from the Middle Ages to MeToo Wallraf-Richartz-Museum and Fondation Corboud , 10/28/2022 - 2/26/2023
Framing Susanna Museum Gouda , 10/5/2024 - 3/23/2025

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This object is a member of the following portfolios:

Exhibitions: Past Is Prologue: History in Contemporary Art

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