Concert 1922

Editor: This is "Concert" by Max Liebermann, housed here at the Harvard Art Museums. It feels quite chaotic, a flurry of strokes capturing a mass of people. What do you see in this piece? Curator: The apparent chaos speaks to the democratization of culture in Liebermann's time. Concerts, once the domain of the elite, were becoming accessible to a broader public. Does the sketch-like quality perhaps mirror the fleeting nature of such public experiences? Editor: That's interesting – the idea of accessibility! The sketchiness hadn't struck me that way. Curator: It certainly makes you consider the politics of public spaces and who has access to them. Thanks for bringing this artwork to my attention! Editor: And thank you for sharing your insights!