Illustration LXII c. 15th century

Editor: This is Illustration LXII, made by an anonymous artist. It looks like a woodcut. It feels narrative, maybe even biblical. What strikes you about it? Curator: I see a potent commentary on power dynamics and knowledge dissemination. Notice the contrast: the scribe, isolated, versus the central cluster, seemingly engaged in debate or judgment. Editor: How does that contrast function politically? Curator: Consider how access to knowledge – represented here by the book – historically defined social hierarchies. Who gets to interpret? Who is excluded? What systems of power are being challenged or reinforced? Editor: That makes me see the image very differently now. Thanks! Curator: Indeed, art like this invites us to question the very structures of authority that shape our understanding.