X-radiograph(s) of "Portrait Painting" 

Curator: Here we have an X-radiograph of a portrait painting, attributed to the circle of Rembrandt van Rijn and held at the Harvard Art Museums. Editor: The ghostly layering immediately evokes the hidden histories within the canvas—a visual palimpsest of artistic intention and perhaps social commentary. Curator: Precisely. The X-ray reveals the underpainting, allowing us to consider the artist's process, their pentimenti, and compositional choices. Editor: Seeing this layering, I wonder about the portrait's subject. Were they part of a privileged class, their image immortalized and then altered, or even painted over due to changing social tides? Curator: The radiographic data provides a unique perspective on the materiality of the artwork itself, independent of its overt subject matter. Editor: Even so, it opens questions about class, access, and representation in Rembrandt's time. Food for thought, indeed.