David dances before the Lord's Covenant with all his might (II Samuel 1:14) 1923

Curator: Lovis Corinth’s drawing, “David dances before the Lord's Covenant with all his might,” part of the Harvard Art Museums collection, pulses with unrestrained emotion. Editor: It's incredibly raw, almost violently so. The frenetic charcoal feels like an extension of David's ecstatic movements. What's driving this energy? Curator: Corinth, working around the turn of the century, often explored psychological depths. This drawing, referencing the Old Testament, showcases David’s fervent devotion, perhaps bordering on frenzy, before the Ark. Editor: I see how the very process, the active application of charcoal, mirrors this zealous dance. It's about immediacy, a direct transfer of feeling onto paper. I imagine his movements were quite vigorous to get these heavy lines. Curator: Absolutely. And it invites us to consider the social and spiritual context of such displays—public vulnerability as a form of power and communion. Editor: It makes you think about the labor involved, not just David's, but Corinth's. All that energy expended in the making, all for this one moment captured in charcoal. Curator: It's a potent reminder that art, at its core, is about the human experience, rendered in the most visceral way. Editor: Precisely, it's the material and the making that truly unlock the emotional core of this work.