Profile Portrait of Young Boy Holding a Book 1897

Curator: Here we have Denman Waldo Ross's "Profile Portrait of Young Boy Holding a Book" currently held at the Harvard Art Museums. Editor: It has a melancholy mood, doesn't it? The impasto technique and muted color palette, especially in the background, feel somber. Curator: Indeed. Ross's application of paint directs the eye to the boy's downcast gaze and the book, which are rendered with precision. Note how the light emphasizes the texture of the paper. Editor: And his simple navy blue jacket. It looks like quite a heavy wool; you can almost feel the texture. The production of such materials and the book itself speak to the boy's social positioning. Curator: Perhaps. Or perhaps the book is more significant as a symbol of knowledge and the potential inherent in youth. The composition invites contemplation on the nature of learning. Editor: I still think the materiality of those everyday objects, the book and jacket, is crucial for understanding the boy's place in the world. Curator: It is certainly compelling, whichever interpretative lens we choose to use. Editor: Precisely. It all depends on how we choose to see it.