The Tub c. 1913

Curator: Duncan Grant’s “The Tub,” painted on canvas with dimensions of 762 by 559 millimeters, immediately strikes me as a rather enigmatic take on the everyday. What's your take? Editor: Well, there's an intriguing blend of Matisse and something...primal. That yellow, slightly sickly, dominates. And the figure, almost a totem, feels less about bathing and more about some private ritual. Curator: Grant, part of the Bloomsbury Group, often challenged conventional Victorian sensibilities. It is likely that “The Tub” reflects early 20th-century discussions around sexuality and the body. Editor: Right, and within the politics of the gaze, Grant's subversion is really interesting. Is he objectifying, celebrating, or queering the figure, in a moment where public displays of sexuality were so taboo? Curator: The work, now held at the Tate Modern, continues to prompt discourse, blurring the boundaries between intimacy, identity, and artistic expression. Editor: Yes, it's a defiant statement, even now. One wonders what sort of bathing experience awaits behind those expressive strokes.