Portrait of a Young Boy in a Black Hat 19th-20th century

Editor: Here we have Denman Waldo Ross’s "Portrait of a Young Boy in a Black Hat," dimensions are about 13 by 10 inches, hanging at Harvard. He looks pretty serious, almost like he's pondering a grand mystery. How do you interpret this work? Curator: His gaze does have a certain weight, doesn’t it? I see a study in contrasts: the soft, almost ethereal quality of the skin tones against the solid, grounded black of the hat and shirt. What stories might be hidden in that juxtaposition? Editor: So, it's not just a portrait, but a story waiting to be told? I never thought of it that way. Curator: Precisely! And sometimes, the best stories are the ones we create ourselves, sparked by the artist's gentle nudges. Editor: That’s a great point, it's about what we bring to it. Curator: Indeed!