This year, artist Yang Hae-gue represents Korea at the Venice Biennale, one of several Korean women artists distinguishing themselves both at home and abroad. In the west, the first written record of female painters comes from Pliny the Elder's encyclopedic work "Naturalis Historia," which mentions the names of four women painters who were active in ancient Greece.

Although nuns in medieval Europe often painted and few female painters such as Sofonisba Anguissola existed during the Renaissance, most painted portraits or still-lifes, which usually dealt with a limited range of subjects. The biggest reason was the taboo against women painting nude portraits, which was part of the basic training. A lucky few were able to learn from their fathers and husbands or use their studios for work.

The first female painter whose skills were considered exceptional compared to male painters was Artemisia Gentileschi, who became famous in 17th century Italy. She received her basic training from her father, a painter himself, who made the mistake of entrusting her to his friend Agostino Tassi for lessons in perspective drawing. Artemisia was raped by Tassi and tortured during the ensuing trial.

"Judith Slaying Holofernes" (1612) by Artemisia Gentileschi

Most of Gentileschi's subjects are strong women from the Old Testament. "Judith Slaying Holofernes" (1612) -- painted after the trial -- depicts Judith decapitating the Assyrian general Holofernes. The dramatic lighting and the realistically rendered expression of Holofernes in pain often led to interpretations that Gentileschi was carrying out her psychological revenge through the painting. Despite producing several other masterpieces dealing with religious and historical motifs, only little was recorded about her achievements at the time. After the feminist movement in art history circles since the 1970s and subsequent re-evaluations, however, she is rising as a legendary figure.   

By Kim Young-na, a professor of art history at Seoul National University