Face to Face With Jacques-Louis David, History’s Most Dangerous Painter

A painting of Socrates, about to drink the hemlock that will kill him. He sits on what appears to be a bed, near the center of the picture, surrounded by people draped in colorful cloth. Some look at him, while others look away or hold their heads in their hands. He wears a white cloth that bares his chest and stomach. With his left hand, he points toward the ceiling; with his right hand, he reaches for a cup, which is held by a person in a red cloth whose head is turned, and whose eyes are hidden. In the background, on the left, an archway opens onto a stairwell, where a few more people are standing.