Ruins, Ronda, Spain 19th-20th century

Editor: Here we have Denman Waldo Ross's "Ruins, Ronda, Spain", currently residing at the Harvard Art Museums. The overall composition, rendered in what looks like watercolor, presents a rather subdued and earthy palette. What can you tell me about this piece? Curator: The emphasis here is on the built environment and its decay, which reflects not just the physical materials, like the stone itself, but the labor and social structures that created and maintained them. How does the artist's application of watercolor affect your perception of these ruins? Editor: It makes them seem ephemeral, as if they're dissolving back into the landscape. Does the medium itself contribute to the meaning? Curator: Absolutely. Watercolor, often associated with sketches and studies, here questions the permanence we usually associate with architecture. It hints at the labor of its creation versus its eventual entropic dissolution. Editor: That's a great way to look at it; I hadn't considered the medium as an active part of the narrative. Curator: Considering the materials really opens up the dialogue.