X-radiograph(s) of "Triptych, Pieta, Salome with Head of St. John and a Martyrdom" 

Curator: Here we have an X-radiograph of "Triptych, Pieta, Salome with Head of St. John and a Martyrdom" by Quentin Metsys, held at the Harvard Art Museums. What strikes you? Editor: It’s ghostly, a shadow of the original. You can almost feel the wood grain beneath layers of paint. I wonder about the physical act of creating such an image. Curator: These radiographs are invaluable for understanding the materials and techniques of Early Netherlandish painting. Editor: Exactly. This image reveals the labor and materiality otherwise hidden beneath the surface, disrupting traditional assumptions about the separation of art and craft. Curator: It allows us to delve into the social conditions of artistic production and the institutional frameworks that give value. Editor: It's quite powerful to see this unseen layer. Curator: Absolutely, it changes how we appreciate the triptych. Editor: It certainly deepens my understanding of artistic labor and valuation.