X-radiograph(s) of "Deposition" 

Curator: This is an X-radiograph of “Deposition,” originally by Petrus Christus, currently residing at the Harvard Art Museums. Editor: It feels ghostly, ethereal almost, like glimpsing the painting's soul. The composition is obscured, but the figures seem to be suspended. Curator: Precisely, the X-ray reveals Christus’s working method. It exposes the layers of paint application, the build-up and alterations, and the very material underpinnings of the artwork. Editor: I see the shroud very clearly; it’s a powerful, enduring symbol of mourning. Even in this spectral form, the emotional weight of the deposition is palpable. Curator: The unseen labor involved, the careful layering, tells us about workshop practices. This radiographic view dismantles any romantic notion of effortless genius. Editor: It's fascinating to see how an established image is transformed when viewed through the lens of a very different technology, the X-ray, which unearths these buried symbols. Curator: Indeed. This X-ray opens up new dimensions of understanding. Editor: It gives the whole event a contemporary resonance, almost as if it’s been re-staged for a modern audience.