Paintings in Hospitals partnered with the National Gallery to bring a 17th century masterpiece to Pocklington Group Practice in East Yorkshire...

Artemisia Gentileschi is considered one of the most famous and accomplished painters among the followers of Caravaggio. In an era when female artists were not easily accepted, she was the first woman to become a member of the Academy of the Arts of Drawing, the artists’ academy in Florence.

Artemisia Gentileschi, Self Portrait as Saint Catherine of Alexandria, about 1615-17. © The National Gallery, London

Artemisia’s rare self-portrait, Self Portrait as Saint Catherine of Alexandria, went on display at Pocklington Group Practice in May this year as part of our partnership with the National Gallery.

Berni Judge, Managing Partner of Pocklington Group Practice said:

“We are extremely excited about being chosen to work with the National Gallery and Paintings in Hospitals and cannot wait for Artemisia to visit us here in Pocklington; we know our staff and patients are going to be thrilled to have her here. We want to be able to share Artemisia’s stay with as many of our local communities as possible, and so that is why we have created some ‘visiting times’ when anyone can come and see her. Another reason for these special events is that, alongside this exciting visit, we are a still a working GP surgery and therefore we need to be able to continue our day-to-day operations as smoothly as possible, so we ask people to please remember and respect that if they are planning to come and visit Artemisia.”

Artemisia Gentileschi as Saint Catherine of Alexandria on display at Pocklington Group Practice. © The National Gallery, London

‘Artemisia Visits… Pocklington Group Practice’ was the first stage in our longer collaboration with the patients and carers at Pocklington Group Practice. Amisha Karia, Paintings in Hospitals’ Head of Collection, Loans & Programming explains:

“We are delighted to be working in partnership with the National Gallery and Pocklington Group Practice to place such an important painting in a care environment. Following Artemisia's visit, we will be working with patients and staff at the GP practice to co-select artworks from the Paintings in Hospitals collection to celebrate the many groundbreaking women artists represented. The chosen artworks will go on display at the surgery for the next three years.”

Although a highly accomplished artist, Artemisia faced challenges in both her professional and personal life: she was raped by a fellow painter and was subjected to gruelling questioning and torture during the trial that ensued. Her biography has long overshadowed her artistic achievements, but today she is recognised as one of the most talented painters of her generation.

Artemisia Gentileschi as Saint Catherine of Alexandria on display at Pocklington Group Practice. © The National Gallery, London

You can read more about this partnership between Paintings in Hospitals and the National Gallery in The Guardian, The Telegraph, The Times, Museums Association, BMJ and CNN. You can also listen to a BBC World Service interview with Paintings in Hospitals trustee Professor Victoria Tischler.

At Paintings in Hospitals, we believe great art should be for everyone and we are committed to using world-class art to support better health and wellbeing.

Following Artemisia's visit, we worked with patients and staff at Pocklington practice to co-select artworks from the Paintings in Hospitals collection to celebrate the many groundbreaking women artists represented. Find out more about the legacy exhibition, which features artists Bridget Riley, Anni Albers, Paula Rego, Helen Chadwick, Maggi Hambling, Mary Fedden and Sushila Singh.

Find out more about our partnerships with national museums, galleries and collections...

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