Bathsheba at the Bath
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Bathsheba at the Bath | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Artist | David Wilkie |
| Year | 1817 |
| Type | Oil on canvas, history painting |
| Dimensions | 40.3 cm × 53.2 cm (15.9 in × 20.9 in) |
| Location | Walker Art Gallery, Liverpool |
Bathsheba at the Bath is an 1817 history painting by the British artist David Wilkie.[1] It depicts the biblical scene of Bathsheba being spied on by the Israeli king David while bathing, entrancing him. Wilkie was influenced by the style of Rembrandt for this painting.[2] The subject had been a popular one since the Renaissance era, second only to David's battle against Goliath in depictions of the monarch.[3] It was an unusual subject matter for Wilkie nonetheless, who was best known at this time for small genre paintings of everyday life.[4]
Wilkie exhibited the painting at the British Institution in 1818 where it was criticised by the press including the Radical newspaper The Examiner.[5] Today it is in the collection of the Walker Art Gallery in Liverpool, having been acquired in 1932.[6]
