Was the situation any easier for women in the 17th Century? Probably not. But the changing attitudes towards art in general meant that there were also changing attitudes towards artists, which meant that there could be more women working. We will, of course, consider Artemisia Gentileschi, but she was by no means the first: it is time to put her in her place! Lavinia Fontana, who we considered at the end of session 2, was undoubtedly a great inspiration, and anticipated many of Artemisia’s innovations, but Galizia Fede, until recently almost unknown, was also an important precedent. In Italy, these artists were followed by Elisabetta Sirani, but it was not just in Italy that women were successful: Judith Leyster became a member of the Guild of St Luke in Haarlem, in the Netherlands, and even took on her own male apprentices. Still in the Netherlands Rachel Ruysch and Clara Peeters both had productive careers in Still Life. Luisa Roldán became not only the first woman in Spain to maintain a studio outside a convent, but also Spain’s first successful female sculptor. Meanwhile in England, Mary Beale became a respected portraitist. As you can tell, in this third talk we will be faced with an appropriately baroque abundance, with more vitality and creativity than you would suspect, and potentially even more than we can cover.