A Street in Rouen (Rue des Arpents) 1887

Curator: This is Camille Pissarro's "A Street in Rouen," a delicate etching rendered on paper, now residing at the Harvard Art Museums. Editor: Ooh, it has this quiet, almost hushed quality. Like stepping back in time... or perhaps into a half-remembered dream. Curator: Absolutely. Pissarro's technique really highlights the labor involved in printmaking. Notice the cross-hatching, the precise lines etched into the plate. Editor: It's funny, I almost don't notice the labor; instead, I just feel the timeless quality of the street. It feels like a world just waiting for someone to walk through it. Curator: The printmaking process itself democratizes art. It allows for multiples, for broader consumption. It challenges the idea of the unique art object. Editor: I find myself wondering about the lives of those who walked this street. Did they notice the cathedral looming in the distance, or were they just thinking about their next meal? Curator: That’s the magic of Pissarro, isn't it? To find the grand in the everyday, and the everyday in the grand. Editor: Yeah, this has definitely made me think about how art and life intersect.