Nature, When Unadorned, Adorned the Most c. 18th century

Curator: Immediately, I'm struck by the texture—the way the stippling and hatching create form. Editor: Indeed! This is "Nature, When Unadorned, Adorned the Most" by Charles Knight, found here at Harvard. It depicts a woman with a birdcage in the background. The title itself seems to position her within a natural, yet constructed, gaze. Curator: The materiality of the print allows for a striking contrast between light and shadow. The artist's labor is evident in the precise mark-making. I wonder about the cultural context of printmaking at this time and its accessibility? Editor: Absolutely. This could be seen as a comment on artifice versus natural beauty, but also perhaps on the constraints placed upon women, reflected in the image of the cage. It asks us to examine the socio-political expectations placed upon women through this representation. Curator: A close look at the printmaking technique, and its availability, challenges notions of who gets to define beauty and how they do so. Editor: It leaves us contemplating how such simple materials and composition can evoke such complex questions about identity, nature, and societal expectations. Curator: A compelling print, indeed.