Blank page; verso: Study for "Hollyhocks" c. 1885 - 1886

Curator: Here we have John Singer Sargent's "Blank page; verso: Study for 'Hollyhocks'" from the Harvard Art Museums. It's a graphite sketch on paper. Editor: Oh, a quick breath of a thing, isn't it? Fleeting. Like capturing a memory just before it fades. Curator: Exactly. This piece is fascinating because it showcases Sargent’s process. Note the repeated lines, the testing of form, typical of a preparatory study. It reveals the labor that goes into even the most seemingly effortless art. Editor: It feels intimate. Like seeing the artist's ghost sketching next to me. You can almost feel the gesture, the speed. The artist's hand. Curator: Right, and this study would have been instrumental in the creation of a larger, more polished piece. It illustrates how the final product is the result of material engagement and a process of refinement. Editor: It’s lovely how something so raw, so unfinished, can still evoke such beauty, you know? It’s the potential, the promise of what could bloom. Curator: Indeed. It brings forth a certain materiality to the work itself. Thank you for that poignant view. Editor: Anytime. I'll keep an eye out for more of those visual ghosts.