Massachusetts Hall, looking north from Harvard Square c. 1858

Editor: So, this is John Adams Whipple’s photograph, "Massachusetts Hall, looking north from Harvard Square." It's...well, sepia-toned and a bit melancholic, maybe? Those bare trees give it a stark feel. What do you see in this piece? Curator: Stark, yes, but also a kind of enduring beauty. It’s like a memory, softened by time, but still sharp in its details. Notice how the tracks curve, leading your eye into the past, towards those hallowed halls. Makes you wonder about all the stories that unfolded right there, doesn't it? Editor: It does. It feels like a different world. Curator: Exactly! And isn't that what the best art does? Lets us glimpse another world, another way of seeing? It whispers secrets, if you're willing to listen. Editor: I think I'm starting to hear them. Thanks! Curator: My pleasure. Keep listening; they only get louder.