The Dead Christ between the Virgin and Saint John the Evangelist c. 1475

Editor: Here we have Carlo Crivelli's "The Dead Christ between the Virgin and Saint John the Evangelist," currently at the Harvard Art Museums. It’s a powerful, small-scale painting. What strikes you about this piece? Curator: I'm drawn to the materiality and social context. Crivelli, active in the late 15th century, used tempera, a process involving ground pigments. We see the labor and the expense of such materials reflected in the finished image. Editor: So, the very making of the painting contributes to its meaning? Curator: Exactly. Consider the gold leaf halos. They signify status and wealth, not just divinity. Crivelli's paintings were commodities themselves, commissioned within specific social and economic power structures. Editor: That’s fascinating. I hadn’t thought about the materials themselves being so central. Curator: Thinking about the means of production always enriches our understanding.