Koller Review 2024

25 had to leave the comfort and anonymity of her father’s workshop and establish her own atelier in Florence in or- der to eventually receive commissions from noble families like the Medici. Gentileschi even gained access to Flor- ence’s art academy, an extraordinary accomplishment for the time, which almost certainly required an incredible amount of determination and persistence. Giovanna Garzoni (1600–1670) was a contemporary of Artemesia Gentileschi. They shared some of the same patrons, including the Medici family, and quite probably knew one another. Garzoni became especially well known for her still lifes, but worked in many genres during her ex- ceptionally successful career. Little is known of her artistic formation, but her uncle was an established painter, and it is assumed she trained under him. She was a highly edu- cated and well-travelled person, and gained admittance to the painter’s guild of Rome. The portrait of Saint Catherine of Alexandria illustrated here is executed in gouache on vellum, one of her preferred techniques. ‘Mother Nature, the creator of every beautiful thing, is herself awoman’. Giambattista Marino, La Galeria, 1619 Clara Peeters. Still life with falcon and prey. Oil on panel. 33.8 × 55 cm. Sold for CHF 620 000