“The artwork titled ‘The King Drinks’, created by Briton Rivière in 1881, is an exemplar of the Academicism art movement and belongs to the genre of animal painting. The painting depicts a lion, representing regality and majesty, as it crouches by the water’s edge, drinking from a reflective body of water set against a rugged, mountainous backdrop. The artwork is evocative of the natural world’s raw beauty and the inherent dignity and power of the lion, portrayed with remarkable detail and lifelike precision. The scene suggests both the solitary and commanding presence of the lion, emphasizing the blend of tranquility and strength characteristic of Rivière’s animal painting style.”
