John Singer Sargent Impressionist Period

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John Singer SargentImpressionist Period
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Carnation, Lily, Lily, Rose
Impressionist Art

• The impressionist movement began in the mid to
  late 1800s in France.
• Impressionist art is marked by visible
  brushstrokes, an emphasis on light and ordinary
  subject matter.
• Photography was gaining popularity
• Inspired candid poses
• Inspired painters to extend their artistic
  expression beyond an exact copy of what the eye
  can see
• Photographs were only black white then, so
  painters really concentrated on colors
• Emphasis was on the vivid overall effect of the
  painting instead of the precise details of each
  object in the painting.

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Fumee dAmbre Gris

• How is this painting the same as a photograph?
• Notice the pose, and the candid, immediate feel
  of the work -- as if the subject doesnt know
  the artist is there
• How is this drawing different from a photograph?
• Notice the visible brush strokes in the
  painting. The background is imperfect.

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Mildred Carter
John Singer Sargent

• John Singer Sargent was born on January 12, 1856
  in Florence, Italy to American parents. He died
  in 1925.
• Sargent was the most successful portrait painter
  of his era, and is still known primarily for his
  portrait work. However, he was also a gifted
  landscape painter.
• Sargent created over 900 oil paintings, and over
  2,000 watercolors, as well as countless sketches
  and charcoal drawings in his lifetime. This is
  an astounding amount of work and testifies to his
  passion for his art.
• Johns parents traveled through Europe
  extensively throughout Johns youth. His father
  was a well-respected doctor, and when John was
  older, his social standing helped him to get work
  as a portrait artist for aristocrats.

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Lady with Parasol

• When John was 13, he began helping a landscape
  artist in his studio. It was here that John
  began painting by copying the artists
  watercolors.
• At age 18, John began studying under an artist in
  Paris. Six months later, he is admitted to the
  Ecole des Beaux Artes in Paris, an extremely
  prestigious Art school.
• By the time he was 27, John was a well-known
  artist. He continued his travels around the
  world and found inspiration wherever he went.
• Impressionist art is often spoken of in terms of
  movement. What do you think that means? Do
  you see movement in this painting.
• How does the artist use color here to create an
  overall effect?
• Notice all of the different shades of white that
  are used from beige to pink to grey and blue.
• What about this painting demonstrates the
  impressionist style?

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Madame X

• This is one of Sargents most famous works and
  was also his favorite. It was painted in 1884
  when John was 28 years old.
• The painting is huge -- measuring over 7 feet
  tall 3.5 feet wide. Imagine how it would feel
  to be standing before this work.
• After meeting Madame X (Madame Gaureau) once in
  Paris, he pleaded with a mutual friend to
  convince her to sit for the portrait.
• In letters he wrote while painting her portrait,
  he wrote of his strugglewith the unpaintable
  beautyof Madame Gaureau.
• He submitted this portrait to the Salon (a very
  prestigious art show) in Paris, and expected the
  judges to reject his work, but they accepted it,
  and the portrait was shown in 1884. 
• The work was an immediate scandal!
• What did the Parisian public in 1884 find
  objectionable? Well.

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• This photo shows the painting as it hung at the
  salon of '84 with the strap off her shoulder --
  much more daring than the portrait currently
  hanging in the Metropolitan Museum of Art.   
• When this portrait was first exhibited in Paris
  in 1884, the public found it scandalous the
  painting was deemed too provocative. The dress
  itself was scandalous in 1884, but the strap
  slipped off the shoulder was just too much!
• Her family demanded that the painting be
  withdrawn from the Salon. The painting was not
  withdrawn however John left Paris with the
  painting before the Exhibition ended. He
  believed that Madame X and her family had plans
  to destroy the painting. (He was right.)
• After the show, John repainted the strap to its
  present position. This, apparently, had gone
  unnoticed for close to a hundred years until an
  art scholar discovered it in an old photograph
  depicting the Salon. What an AMAZING discovery!
  and in many ways totally alters the appearance of
  the image.
• Sargent eventually exhibited it at the Worlds
  Fair in San Francisco in 1916 and sold it to the
  Metropolitan Museum of Art for 1,000 British
  pounds.
• By that time (1916,) styles had progressed
  sufficiently that the painting was not seen as
  scandalous in any respect. Too, John had
  repainted the strap.

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• What is extraordinary about this painting? Why
  do you think it was Sargents favorite work?
• What do you think of Sargents use of colors
  here?
• In his letters, he joked about the color of
  Madame Xs skin, writing, Do you object to
  people who are disguised to the extent of being
  uniform lavender colour all over? If so you
  would not care for my sitter but she has the
  most beautiful lines
• What kind of woman do you think that Madame X is?
  What do you know about her from looking at the
  painting?
• What do you think of her pose?
• Does this painting look like a photograph?
• What about it is like a photo and what about it
  is different?

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Lady Agnew of Lochnaw

• This is another of Sargents most famous
  portraits. It was painted in 1892 when Sargent
  was 36 years old.
• The painting was an astounding success and was
  praised by art critics as one of the greatest
  portraits of all time.
• What do you think makes this portrait special?
  How is it different from other portraits you have
  seen think about paintings of kings and queens.
• What do you know about Lady Agnew just from what
  you see in the portrait?
• What elements of the impressionist style are used
  in this painting?
• How do you think the use of colors make a
  difference in this painting? Imagine that her
  dress were red or black. How would that change
  the tone of the painting?

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Frederick Law Olmstead

• This portrait was done in 1895.
• The subject is widely recognized as the father of
  American landscape architecture. He designed
  Central Park in NYC.
• This portrait was done towards the end of
  Olmsteads life. Sargent received pressure from
  Olmsteads wife to make Olmstead look more
  healthy and vibrant than he was at the time.
• It is impossible to know if he bowed to her
  wishes, but to do so would have been out of
  character for Sargent.
• Some critics have said that this portrait is a
  weak effort on Sargents part.
• A particular criticism is that the background is
  contrived and unrealistic.
• Sargent did paint this indoors, and added the
  flora from his imagination.
• What do you think?
• What do you think Sargent was trying to do in
  this portrait?