Album Leaf with Three Photographs; verso: Album Leaf with Four Photographs and a Drawing 19th-20th century

Curator: This is "Album Leaf with Three Photographs; verso: Album Leaf with Four Photographs and a Drawing" by John Singer Sargent. It resides here at the Harvard Art Museums. The dimensions are about 53 by 68 centimeters. Editor: The geometric patterns are dizzying! It feels like peering into a kaleidoscope, but one made of stone and shadow. Curator: Yes, Sargent compiled these photographs, likely as a visual resource for his own work, reflecting an interest in Islamic design elements and how they might be incorporated into his painting process. Editor: So, it’s about the labor of image-making, his gathering of resources, the material culture that fed his art. The album becomes a site of production itself. Curator: Precisely! And consider how the museum context shapes our view of these images, transforming what was once a personal archive into a public display of artistic influence. Editor: The album format invites a narrative, a chronological glimpse into the artist's research, turning a practical tool into an object of fascination for us now. A journey that we can now partake in.