Cityscape, Amsterdam 19th-20th century

Curator: I'm struck by the delicate, almost ghostly quality of this pencil drawing. Editor: That's Denman Waldo Ross' "Cityscape, Amsterdam," currently residing in the Harvard Art Museums. The work measures about 25 by 20 centimeters. Curator: There's a towering spire, a focal point perhaps representing spiritual aspiration, contrasted with the dense cluster of buildings below. Is it a tension between the sacred and the mundane? Editor: Or perhaps it's simply a study in contrasts, lightness of touch against the imposing weight of architecture. I'm fascinated by the labor involved in the built environment, the sheer volume of material shaping our lives. Curator: It evokes a sense of fleeting time, a moment captured. Editor: For me, it prompts thoughts about how urban development affects the lives of the people dwelling within it.