Allegory of Inclination
| Allegory of Inclination | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Artist | Artemisia Gentileschi |
| Year | 1615-1616 |
| Medium | Oil on canvas |
| Movement | Baroque |
| Dimensions | 152 cm × 61 cm (60 in × 24 in) |
| Location | Casa Buonarroti, Florence |
Allegory of Inclination is a 1615–1616 oil on canvas painting by Artemisia Gentileschi, now in the paintings gallery at the Casa Buonarroti in Florence.
It was commissioned by Michelangelo Buonarroti the younger (1568–1646), nephew of Michelangelo. It shows a nude young woman with an elaborate hairstyle, representing 'Inclination', in the sense of a natural talent for something. She holds a compass in both hands, whilst a star is shown above her in the top right. Her features recur elsewhere in Gentileschi's work, such as the engraving by Jérome David, and in self-portraits of the artist. The figure's nudity later proved so embarrassing to the commissioner's great-nephew Leonardo di Buonarroto that he commissioned Baldassarre Franceschini, known as el Volterrano to paint clothes over parts of it in 1684.
