Now at the Getty “Hercules and Omphale” by Artemisia Gentileschi – a masterpiece reclaimed

The Getty has announced the completion of a complex, three-year conservation treatment of a rescued Artemisia Gentileschi painting. Five years after surviving a massive explosion in Beirut, the large-scale masterpiece Hercules and Omphale is now on view in a display focused on the artist’s portrayal of strong women.

Pictured above – Getty’s senior conservator of paintings Ulrich Birkmaier poses with the nearly fully restored Hercules and Omphale by Artemisia Gentileschi, from Sursock Palace Collections © 2025 J. Paul Getty Trust.

On view in the Getty Center Museum’s East Pavilion gallery 206 from June 10 through September 14, 2025, Hercules and Omphale will be displayed alongside other paintings by Gentileschi that highlight her skill in portraying donne forti or “strong women.”  This exquisite exhibition of five rare paintings serve as a concise overview of the great artists’ storied career.

“Arguably the most celebrated female artist of 17th-century Italy, the rediscovery of Gentileschi’s Hercules and Omphale in Beirut was a momentous occasion for art historians around the world. We are grateful to the Sursock Palace for entrusting us to restore this masterpiece to its full glory and present it in the Museum’s galleries before it returns home.” Timothy Potts, Maria Hummer-Tuttle and Robert Tuttle Director of the Getty Museum.

An Italian Baroque painter, Artemisia Gentileschi was a trailblazer in every sense. Living and working in a male-dominated world, she defied societal expectations and forged a successful career as a history painter—a field dominated by men. Her work, rich in mythological and biblical subjects, reclaims female narratives of power, suffering, and triumph. From Judith Slaying Holofernes to Susannah and the Elders, Artemisia’s paintings were unapologetically bold. She gave voice and visual form to the inner strength of women, often reflecting her own traumatic experiences, including her public rape trial against her father’s colleague, Agostino Tassi. Known for her ambitious narrative scenes from ancient history, classical mythology, and the Bible, Gentileschi’s Hercules and Omphale depicts the Greek myth of Hercules enslaved by Omphale, the Queen of Lydia, who forces him to do women’s work as punishment for accidentally killing Iphitus. Seated at the center of the painting amid the queen’s maidens, Hercules holds a spindle of wool while Omphale triumphantly wears Hercules’ skin of the slayed Nemean lion while holding his wooden club. Gazing at each other, the scene marks the moment when the queen and hero fell in love, as Cupid gleefully watches at the hero’s feet. With its inverted sexual roles, the painting’s theme inspired 17th-century writers and artists to explore issues of gender and power.

Other paintings presented alongside Hercules and Omphale in Getty’s display include Bathsheba and David, circa 1635-37, from the Columbus Museum of Art; Susanna and the Elders, circa 1635-37, from a private collection; Self-Portrait as a Female Martyr, circa 1613-14, and Getty’s recently acquired Lucretia, circa 1627. A centerpiece of this intimate yet grand exhibition is the intricately restored Hercules and Omphale, a painting that captures a moment of gender role reversal and female dominance—quintessential themes in Artemisia’s oeuvre. Tragically, this painting was gravely damaged in the Beirut port explosion, housed at the historic Sursock Palace, which suffered catastrophic losses. Lady Yvonne Sursock, a beloved figure in Lebanon’s cultural landscape, was injured during the blast and later passed away, adding another layer of sorrow to this story.

The recent unveiling of Hercules and Omphale at the Getty Museum marks not just the return of a Baroque masterwork to public view, but the resurrection of a painting that bridges mythology, trauma, and artistic triumph. Painted by Artemisia Gentileschi—one of the most formidable women in art history—this monumental canvas has endured centuries of obscurity, a devastating explosion, and an extraordinary restoration to now emerge as a living symbol of resilience, power, and feminist reimagination.

Originally housed in Beirut’s Sursock Palace, Hercules and Omphale was severely damaged during the catastrophic 2020 port explosion. Found buried under rubble, embedded with shards of glass, mortar, and wood, it seemed a likely casualty of tragedy. But instead, the painting became the subject of a remarkable three-year conservation effort led by the Getty Museum, under the direction of conservator Ulrich Birkmaier. Their approach—technically precise, emotionally attuned, and philosophically grounded—elevated the restoration from an act of repair to one of cultural stewardship.

Birkmaier described the project as the most daunting of his career. It wasn’t just the extent of the physical damage that made the task monumental—it was the emotional resonance of the work itself. Artemisia’s life, marked by personal trauma and professional defiance, finds a haunting echo in the painting’s own journey through destruction and renewal. In restoring it, the team wasn’t simply conserving paint and canvas—they were preserving a voice, a story, and a legacy.

“In my over 30-year career as a paintings conservator, this is some of the worst damage I have ever witnessed and was one of the most challenging yet rewarding projects I’ve had the pleasure to work on. It was sort of like assembling a massive puzzle—little by little the painting came back to life. X-ray analysis not only served to visualize some of the changes Artemisia made during the painting process, but it also aided in the visual reconstruction of some details that were lost in the explosion when glass and debris shattered multiple areas of the painting.”​​​​​​

Senior conservator of paintings Ulrich Birkmaier.

From a technical standpoint, Hercules and Omphale is a triumph of mature Baroque painting. The canvas is over life-size, asserting presence and scale with bold chiaroscuro, dynamic composition, and rich textures. Hercules, rendered with sculptural muscularity reminiscent of antique statuary like the Belvedere Torso, stands disarmed—not humiliated, but contemplative. Omphale, draped in Hercules’ lion skin, exudes not sensuality but sovereignty. Unlike the playful, often erotic interpretations by Rubens or Boucher, Gentileschi reconfigures the myth with psychological nuance and gendered authority. Omphale doesn’t flirt; she reigns.

This reversal of traditional power dynamics is no mere subversion for its own sake—it’s a deliberate reframing. As a female artist in 17th-century Naples, Gentileschi carved out a space for women in both her subject matter and her career. Known for her portrayals of strong biblical and mythological heroines, she imbues Omphale with the same dignity and gravitas. The psychological realism of Omphale’s calm, steady gaze and the moral complexity of Hercules’ introspection turn the painting into a meditation on identity, strength, and sovereignty.

The restoration process for Hercules and Omphale was both meticulous and reverent. Major features—faces, hands, and central motifs—were miraculously preserved, allowing conservators to focus on reconstructing the torn and punctured peripheries without compromising the painting’s integrity. Utilizing technical imaging, pigment analysis, and delicate in-painting, the team treated the canvas as a historical witness as much as a work of art. Their guiding principle was not to erase time, but to respect it.

A surprising but noteworthy contributor to the project was actor and Baroque painting expert Federico Castelluccio, who assisted in re-creating select passages in Gentileschi’s original style. His involvement added yet another layer of authenticity and interdisciplinary collaboration to an already exceptional restoration effort.

Now exhibited as part of Artemisia’s Strong Women: Rescuing a Masterpiece, the magnificent artwork Hercules and Omphale is not simply a rediscovered treasure, but a cultural touchstone. It tells multiple stories: of myth retold, of female strength reclaimed, of heritage rescued from the brink of loss. It is a visual and historical palimpsest—bearing traces of both the 17th century and the trauma of modern-day Beirut.

In rescuing this painting, the Getty Museum has done more than preserve a masterpiece—it has revived a powerful narrative about survival, voice, and the unbreakable connection between art and life. Hercules and Omphale is not only a painting to be admired—it is a painting to be remembered. It stands, now more than ever, as a beacon of what endures: vision, courage, and the enduring power of a woman’s brush.