X-radiograph(s) of "Rescue of Pyrrhus (copy)" 

Curator: Here we have an X-radiograph of "Rescue of Pyrrhus," a copy of an original work attributed to John Smibert. The image itself seems ghostly, ethereal. Editor: It feels incredibly raw and exposes the labor of creation. To see the underlayers, the artist's process laid bare, shifts our understanding of the finished work entirely. Curator: Indeed. The composition, even in this form, reveals a dynamic arrangement, the figures caught in a moment of dramatic intensity. The light and shadow— Editor: —speak to a deeper materiality. It is not about the surface illusion, but about the physical application of pigment, the choices made in the studio. We are able to see the artist's hand, and the materials manipulated. Curator: I appreciate the starkness of the x-ray, almost a visual deconstruction. Editor: Precisely! And, for me, that enhances its impact profoundly. Curator: It offers a fresh perspective, almost a new artwork born from the old. Editor: A tangible reminder that art is made, not simply appearing.