Bathsheba 1912

Franz von Stuck made this painting, Bathsheba, with oils, and wow, the drama! Imagine him, brush in hand, building up those fiery reds and shadowy figures layer by layer. The intensity, right? The surface shimmers with this almost uncomfortable heat. It's like Stuck is inviting us to see and feel the weight of temptation, power, and vulnerability. Those dark silhouettes in the background really give the sense of impending doom. The whole thing is theatrical, operatic even, like a stage set for a tragic drama. There's this great connection between the Symbolists like Stuck and earlier painters like the Pre-Raphaelites, a shared interest in dramatic storytelling but it’s all done in such different ways. Seeing the ways artists echo, challenge, and reinvent each other’s ideas—that's what keeps painting so alive, so endlessly interesting.