Photo taken from https://www.widewalls.ch/dark-paintings/caravaggio-judith-beheading-holofernes/
This oil painting created by Caravaggio is his depiction of a woman hero who saves her people by decapitating their enemy, Assyrian general Holofernes, taken from the Book of Judith. The biblical story follows the common theme associated with powerful women of the 16th century: Judith seduced General Holofernes then took him back to his quarters and decapitated him (Khan Academy).
Take a moment to look away from the horror of a decapitated head, and instead look at Judith (the one performing the decapitation) and her facial expression. This arguably could be the most important part of this painting, and may even paramount the gore. If you look closely, her face shows a mix of emotion, that could possibly be interpreted subjectively. Judith’s whole character is dignity over triumph; Is she showing heroic triumph, or, is disgust or despair taking over the pride of killing an enemy?
After looking at Judith’s complex expression, look at the old servants as well as General Holofernes. The servant shows an almost bloodthirsty expression, her hands at the ready to catch Holofernes head in her bag as a trophy of victory, and Holofernes, naked, surprised, and weak at the hands of a woman. Now, look beyond the faces and at how their body language is being depicted. Whether you think Judith’s facial characteristics are showing disgust, trauma, or even weakness, while her body is pulled away from Holofernes, her hand is entangled in her hair, which could possibly refute your thought of her disgust or possible trauma overpowering the triumph of her kill, especially with her other hand firmly on the blade.
Another thing to appreciate in this painting is the use of black. It illuminates the characters in the painting in such a way it looks like a spotlight, which helps take away any background and instead just a direct focus on what the characters are doing. To me, it almost reminds me of a scene in play, which could be especially fitting for this specific painting.
While some of Caravaggios work was influenced by the Council of Trent (ex. The Crucifixion of Saint Peter, which is a very straightforward painting depicting the crucifixion of one of Jesus’ 12 apostles) I don’t believe Judith Beheading Holofernes was influenced by the Council of Trent. The Council wanted to restore faith in the Catholic Church, yet Caravaggio’s work before his 1600 The Crucifixion of Saint Peter was often rejected due to its unorthodox interpretations. Due to this, I would argue that in this specific painting, Caravoggio directly dismissed any influence from the Council of Trent (Ahlstrom). It should also be noted that the Book of Judith, which his beheading painting was based on, had Protestant influence.
To be quite honest, after finding this piece of Baroque art, I found a print of it on Amazon and do plan to hang it in my home. While I think this painting is absolutely beautiful and complex, the meaning behind it makes it all the more amazing to me.
References:
Ahlstrom, Courtney. “Mild Applause: Caravaggio’s Rejected Altarpieces.” Ahlstrom Appraisals LLC, Ahlstrom Appraisals LLC, 27 Nov. 2014, ahlstromappraisals.com/art-history-blog/mild-applause-caravaggio
“Caravaggio – Judith Beheading Holofernes.” Widewalls, www.widewalls.ch/dark-paintings/caravaggio-judith-beheading-holofernes/.
“Caravaggio, Deposition.” Khan Academy, Khan Academy, www.khanacademy.org/humanities/monarchy-enlightenment/baroque-art1/baroque-italy/a/caravaggio-deposition.
“Judith Beheading Holofernes, 1599 by Caravaggio.” Henri Matisse, www.caravaggio.org/judith-beheading-holofernes.jsp.
Sarah's Blog 
This seems like a very dark and influential painting. All three individuals within the portrait all seem to display different emotions, like you describe. I agree that it does hint at a biblical reference but I can see why this may have unorthodox for the time period. The red draped cloth in the background helps hint at the graphic nature of the art. The pose the he holds as he is slain is one I feel greatly reflects Baroque era, with the odd and unusual contortion of his body.
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Hello Sarah,
I agree that the facial expression of the young woman is definitely the focal point of the piece (even with the gore and blood). We can feel the anger within the old woman, yet the younger woman’s facial expression gives the viewer the role of inspector as we’re trying to figure out what her expression truly represents and/or what she may be thinking. Is it a look of fear, hesitation, disgust, anger…..etc? At one point I even thought maybe it’s due to her not wanting to get blood on her dress so it’s a thought of “oh man, that’s a lot of blood” lol. Either way, it’s definitely a memorable piece and kudos to the artist who’s able to bring such curiosity within his viewers.
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The expression in this painting is really incredible! The subject matter of this is extremely dramatic, as well as the high contrast in value and colors. The first thing I noticed when looking at this painting is Judith, and then my eyes moved to women standing next to her. Then I follow their gaze to see the shocking and gruesome scene of Holofernes’ head being decapitated. It’s really impressive how realistic this piece of art looks. It almost looks like a snapshot of real-life or a movie, which is characteristic of baroque art.
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