The Blinded Samson
1912
Lovis Corinth captures the raw agony of the biblical hero Samson, stripped of his strength and sight just after his capture by the Philistines. Painted in 1912, a year after the artist suffered a debilitating stroke, this visceral scene is practically a self-portrait of physical vulnerability. The heavy chains and blood-soaked bandages scream with the intensity of Expressionism, showing a man who has lost everything but his muscular frame. It’s a gritty, unflinching look at suffering that feels incredibly modern.