Details of Scales, "Judgment" Lunette, Boston Public Library; verso: Designs for Vaulting 1895 - 1916

Curator: This is John Singer Sargent’s preparatory sketch, entitled "Details of Scales, 'Judgment' Lunette, Boston Public Library; verso: Designs for Vaulting." Editor: It's intriguing! The overlapping lines and ghostly architectural forms give it a dreamlike quality, like a city half-remembered. Curator: Precisely. The repetition of shapes and the geometry contribute to a sense of underlying order, even amidst the apparent chaos of the sketch. The lunette details with those scales hint at a grander symbolic scheme. Editor: I find myself thinking about the labor involved in executing a design like this on such a grand scale, from concept to the making of the physical structure. The materiality of it all is quite interesting, and somewhat at odds with the dream-like qualities. Curator: I see what you mean, yet the lines alone—their quality and direction—are enough to suggest weight, space, and even the passage of light. Editor: It's interesting to see how Sargent worked through the construction of this design. It offers a window into the creative process as a physical act. Curator: Indeed. Sargent allows us a privileged glimpse into the genesis of a monumental work. Editor: It almost feels like we're witnessing the architecture take shape. Curator: A fascinating testament to the mind and hand at work.