Moses Drawing Water from the Rock n.d.

Charles Le Brun made this drawing, Moses Drawing Water from the Rock, with pen and brown ink, heightened with white opaque watercolor over black chalk underdrawing, squared in black chalk, probably in France in the mid-17th century. Le Brun’s image depicts a scene from the Old Testament in which Moses miraculously provides water for the Israelites in the desert. Note the organization of the figures. Moses occupies a central, elevated position, his gestures commanding the flow of water. Below him, the Israelites reach out in supplication, their bodies contorted by thirst. Le Brun was the first painter to King Louis XIV, and director of the Royal Academy of Painting and Sculpture. In this role he set the standard for French art for decades. This drawing likely functioned as a preparatory study for a painting or tapestry. We can see it as an expression of the social and political context of the time, where the King of France would have been seen as the provider of the population's needs. To fully appreciate this drawing, one might research Le Brun's career and the artistic conventions of the French Baroque period. Understanding the political and religious symbolism prevalent in 17th-century France enriches our understanding of the work.