Sketches of Armor, Ships and Heads 1869

Curator: John Singer Sargent’s "Sketches of Armor, Ships and Heads" is a compelling piece, even in its unfinished state. It's part of the collection at the Harvard Art Museums, rendered in watercolor and graphite on paper. Editor: My first thought? Turbulent. You’ve got this wild jumble of historical symbols on one side and then a ship battling a storm on the other. It's like two different kinds of chaos crashing into each other. Curator: Sargent often sketched like this, seemingly disparate ideas coexisting on one page. The armor and flags suggest a fascination with history, perhaps chivalry and national identity. Editor: And that ghostly head emerging from beneath the armor? Gives it a slightly unsettling, dreamlike quality. The ship, though… that's raw, immediate. Curator: Absolutely. Sargent was an American expatriate, so the flags are really intriguing here. He seems to be contemplating historical narratives and the weight of national symbols. Editor: For me, it’s more about the eternal struggle – man versus nature, the past versus the present. Even in a sketch, Sargent captures that feeling of being caught in the storm. Curator: It’s a work that invites speculation, even inspires creative storytelling, and I think that’s why it continues to resonate with us. Editor: Yes, it is a conversation starter about the past and the present, and the drama that connects them.