X-radiograph(s) of "Double Portrait" 

Curator: This is an X-radiograph of Rembrandt's "Double Portrait" here at the Harvard Art Museums, a peek behind the surface, you might say. Editor: Eerie, yet fascinating. It's like looking at ghosts. The ghostly rendering strips away the color, the vibrancy, leaving only form and structure. Curator: What I find arresting is the process of uncovering these hidden layers. It prompts questions about authenticity, value, and the artist's original intent. Editor: Absolutely. This X-ray reveals the construction, or perhaps deconstruction, of identity, raising questions about the subjects' social standing in 17th-century Dutch society. Curator: In a way, it lays bare the essence of the portrait, like seeing the skeleton beneath the skin. It’s beautiful, in an unsettling way. Editor: I agree. And it reminds us that artworks, like people, have hidden depths, stories buried beneath the surface waiting to be uncovered, or X-rayed.