Bergblau 

Curator: This is "Bergblau," an artist's oil color manufactured by Buchner & Sohn, part of the Harvard Art Museums collection. Editor: The weathered label and aged jar evoke a profound sense of history and materiality; the pigment itself speaks of artistic process and creation. Curator: The "Bergblau" marking is significant. Colors, like materials, had their moment in the sun, dictated by availability, trade, and artistic trends of the period. This particular blue would have specific cultural associations. Editor: Indeed, blue pigment especially holds so much symbolic weight. Its rarity in nature contributed to its preciousness. Perhaps this particular shade, "Bergblau," mountain blue, alludes to a sense of sublime inspiration, linking earthly pigments with celestial realms. Curator: It makes you consider the value we place on materials and colors, how that affects the way we make and see art, and how museums play a role in preserving that cultural value. Editor: Absolutely. It's a reminder of the silent language of color and how it continues to shape our perceptions.