Cut I c. 16th century

Curator: This is an intriguing print titled "Cut I" by an anonymous artist, held here at the Harvard Art Museums. It's small but dense with imagery. Editor: Initially, it strikes me as wonderfully apocalyptic—the heavy rain, the teeming crowd. There's an intensity of line and texture. Curator: It feels medieval, doesn't it? The way the figures are drawn, almost like characters in a morality play. I wonder about that figure ascending to the heavens. Editor: Right. It reminds me of the precarity of everyday existence during that period, the ever-present threat of famine, disease, social upheaval. Curator: Yes, and the promise, or threat, of divine intervention. Though the artist is unknown, the image holds such power. Editor: Power, indeed. It serves as a stark reminder of the social anxieties that permeated society. Curator: It speaks to the timelessness of human struggle and aspiration. Editor: Absolutely—a reminder that even in the face of uncertainty, humanity endures, questions, and creates.