Psalm LXIX by Edward Clifford, 1872. Pencil, watercolour and gouache on paper; 10 ½ x 18 ¾ inches (26.6 x 47.6 cm). Private collection. Click on image to enlarge it.
This is another symbolic representation of a religious subject that Clifford exhibited at the Dudley Gallery, this particular picture in 1873, no. 493. The subject is an illustration to Psalms Chapter 69 (To the chief musician upon Shoshannin. A Psalm of King David). The psalm begins: “Save me, O God; for the waters are come in unto my soul. I sink in deep mire, where there is no standing: I am come into deep waters where the floods overflow me. I am weary of crying: my throat is dried: mine eyes fail while I wait for my God.” Clifford has chosen to interpret the subject with the nude figure of a crouching young man on a bleak seashore with a dark stormy sky as a background. The knowledge of anatomy displayed in this figure shows a considerable advance over that portrayed in his Some have entertained Angels unawares of the year previously.
Last modified 3 February 2023