Portrait of a Seated Young Man Facing Away

Editor: Here we have Denman Waldo Ross’s "Portrait of a Seated Young Man Facing Away." It's intimate and the figure isn't idealized at all. What can you tell me about the context of this piece? Curator: Well, consider the politics of representation. The male nude, traditionally a symbol of power, is here vulnerable, almost domestic. How might this challenge late 19th, early 20th-century notions of masculinity? Editor: So, it's making a statement by not making a grand statement? Curator: Precisely! It also enters into a visual dialogue with academic traditions, perhaps critiquing them. It opens the art world up to modern audiences. Editor: Interesting. It gives me a new perspective. Thanks!