A Young Woman in a Broad-Brimmed Hat, Looking to the Left, her Hands Clasped 

Editor: Here we have Susanna Duncombe’s "A Young Woman in a Broad-Brimmed Hat." It’s a delicate pencil sketch, and there's a certain wistful quality to the subject. What do you make of it? Curator: It whispers, doesn’t it? There’s a quiet intimacy achieved through the soft lines and the very small scale. I wonder what she’s thinking about, or perhaps who she’s thinking *of*. It’s like catching a private moment. Do you get that sense, too? Editor: Yes, definitely. It feels very personal, almost like a diary entry. I hadn't considered that it was a private moment. Curator: Exactly! And because it's a sketch, not a finished portrait, there's a feeling of immediacy. It invites us into her world in a very special way. It's really quite lovely. Editor: I see what you mean. I'll never look at sketches the same way. Curator: Good! Art should shift our perspective, even just a little.