Fedee Galizia signed her painting of Judith and Holofernes on the sword of Judith. Just as Judith stole the warrior's sword and used it to cut off his head, so Galizia used her signature to appropriate masculine power for herself as a painter. As Judith wields the sword, Galizia wields her powerful brush. Indeed, she also wields the sword in one sense. For it is the artist who cuts off the head of Holofernes here by exercising supreme power over all that she paints. Alas, Galizia is better at describing jewels and silks than she is at bringing figures to life through movement and psychological expression. In contrast to Caravaggio and Artimisia Gentileschi, her heroine looks more like a pretty mannequin.
