[title not known] 1972

Curator: Looking at this work, which we simply know to be by John Piper, you're immediately transported, aren't you? It's like stepping into a dream of Venice, or perhaps a gothic fairytale. Editor: It feels heavy, almost oppressive. The architecture looms, doesn't it? I see a history steeped in power, both religious and secular, bearing down. Curator: Precisely! Piper had a talent for capturing the sublime weight of structures. The way he uses ink and wash, it’s as if the buildings are exhaling their stories. Editor: Yes, and those stories often obscure the experiences of those excluded from such grand narratives. Who built these structures? Who suffered for their opulence? Curator: You're right to bring that to the foreground. Perhaps Piper's romanticism, his love for texture and decay, also invites us to question what we choose to glorify in history. Editor: It is a challenge to look at beauty and remember injustice. I'm struck by the need to remain critical. Curator: So, beauty and weight, a potent combo, I think. Editor: Definitely a reminder that aesthetics and ethics are permanently entwined.