Susanna e i vecchioni

Van Dyck painted this as a young man barely into his twenties, still in Antwerp and still working in the long shadow of Rubens, before Italy and the English court turned him into the most sought-after portraitist in Europe. The story comes from the Book of Daniel. Susanna, a married woman, is bathing in her garden when two respected old judges corner her and demand she submit, threatening to accuse her of adultery if she refuses. Van Dyck freezes the worst instant. One elder drags at the red cloth she clutches to cover herself while the other leans in from the shadow. Everything is pushed close to the front of the picture, so there is nowhere for her, or for us, to step back. The Munich gallery has owned it since 1806.