X-radiograph(s) of "Plaster figure" 

Curator: Here we have an X-radiograph of a plaster figure by Auguste Rodin, residing in the Harvard Art Museums collection. Editor: Immediately, the image strikes me as ghostly and fragile, revealing hidden support structures within the form. What does it say about Rodin's process? Curator: It challenges the myth of the solitary genius. Seeing the internal framework highlights the labour and materials involved, demystifying the art-making process and grounding it in the real world. Editor: Indeed, it also begs the question of artistic agency when we consider the interventions that ensure the sculpture's stability over time. Whose hand, or which forces, truly shape the final form? Curator: I see this radiograph through a lens of vulnerability and resistance. What appears as reinforcement can also be interpreted as constraints, perhaps echoing broader societal limitations on artistic expression, or on the bodies represented. Editor: That’s a fascinating perspective. To me, the image is a revealing reminder that what we admire as "art" is often the product of complex interactions between creator, material, and social forces.