The Duel of Women (The Duel of Isabella de Carazzi and Diambra de Pettinella) 1636

Jusepe de Ribera’s “The Duel of Women” was created in the 17th century using oil on canvas, a common medium for the period. But Ribera’s approach to applying the paint is anything but ordinary. Look closely, and you'll notice the earthy tones and the dramatic contrast between light and shadow. Ribera built up these effects through layers, a painstaking, repetitive action, and each stroke of the brush is visible, giving the surface a palpable sense of texture. This technique, known as tenebrism, was typical of its time. The artist’s skilled manipulation of light and dark gives the scene an intense, theatrical quality. The bodies seem solid and sculptural, almost as if they were carved from stone. Ribera has imbued these women with an unusual physicality. Yet the very laboriousness of this technique, requiring both physical effort and artistic vision, is what gives the painting its expressive power. It's a far cry from today’s smooth, machine-made surfaces, reminding us of the value—and the cost—of human labor. The painting process itself is inseparable from the artwork’s meaning.