The Life and Art of John Singer Sargent

John Singer Sargent (January 12, 1856 - April 14, 1925) was the leading portrait painter of his era, known for representing the elegance and extravagance of the Gilded Age as well the unique character of his subjects. He was also facile in landscape painting and watercolors and painted ambitious and highly-regarded murals for several significant buildings in Boston and Cambridge — the Museum of Fine Arts, the Boston Public Library, and Harvard's Widener Library.

Sargent was born in Italy to American expatriates, and lived a cosmopolitan life, equally respected in both the United States and Europe for his prodigious artistic skill and talent. Although American, he didn't visit the United States until he was 21 and therefore never felt completely American. Nor did he feel English or European, which gave him an objectivity that he used to his advantage in his art.

Family and Early Life

Sargent was a descendant of the earliest American colonialists. His grandfather had been in the merchant shipping business in Gloucester, MA before moving his family to Philadelphia. Sargent's father, Fitzwilliam Sargent, became a physician and married Sargent's mother, Mary Newbold Singer, in 1850. They went to Europe in 1854 after the death of their firstborn child and became expatriates, traveling and living modestly off savings and a small inheritance. Their son, John, was born in Florence in January 1856.

Sargent received his early education from his parents and from his travels. His mother, an amateur artist herself, took him on field trips and to museums and he drew constantly. He was multilingual, learning to speak French, Italian, and German fluently. He learned geometry, arithmetic, reading, and other subjects from his father. He also became an accomplished piano player.

Early Career

In 1874, at the age of 18, Sargent began studying with Carolus-Duran, a young accomplished progressive portrait artist, while also attending the École des Beaux Arts. Carolus-Duran taught Sargent the alla prima technique of the Spanish painter, Diego Velazquez (1599-1660), emphasizing the placement of decisive single brush strokes, which Sargent learned very easily. Sargent studied with Carolus-Duran for four years, by which time he had learned all he could from his teacher.

Sargent was influenced by impressionism, was friends with Claude Monet and Camille Pissarro, and preferred landscapes at first, but Carolus-Duran steered him toward portraits as a way to make a living. Sargent experimented with impressionism, naturalism, and realism, pushing the boundaries of the genres while making sure his work remained acceptable to the traditionalists of the Académie des Beaux Arts. The painting, "Oyster Gatherers of Cancale" (1878), was his first major success, bringing him recognition by the Salon at the age of 22.

Sargent traveled every year, including trips to the United States, Spain, Holland, Venice, and exotic locations. He traveled to Tangier in 1879-80 where he was struck by the light of North Africa, and was inspired to paint "The Smoke of Ambergris" (1880), a masterful painting of a woman clothed in and surrounded by white. The author Henry James described the painting as "exquisite." The painting was lauded at the Paris salon of 1880 and Sargent became known as one of the most important young impressionists in Paris.

With his career flourishing, Sargent returned to Italy and while in Venice between 1880 and 1882 painted genre scenes of women at work while continuing to paint large-scale portraits. He returned to England in 1884 after his confidence was shaken by a poor reception towards his painting, the "Portrait of Madame X," at the Salon.

Henry James

Novelist Henry James (1843-1916) and Sargent became lifelong friends after James wrote a review praising Sargent's work in Harper's Magazine in 1887. They formed a bond based on shared experiences as expatriates and members of the cultural elite, as well as both being keen observers of human nature.

It was James who encouraged Sargent to move to England in 1884 after his painting, "Madame X" was so poorly received at the salon and Sargent's reputation was sullied. Following that, Sargent lived in England for 40 years, painting the wealthy and elite.

In 1913 James's friends commissioned Sargent to paint a portrait of James for his 70th birthday. Although Sargent felt a bit out of practice, he agreed to do it for his old friend, who had been a constant and loyal supporter of his art.

Isabella Stewart Gardner

Sargent had many wealthy friends, the art patron Isabella Stewart Gardner among them. Henry James introduced Gardner and Sargent to each other in 1886 in Paris and Sargent painted the first of three portraits of her in January 1888 on a visit to Boston. Gardner purchased 60 of Sargent's paintings during her life, including one of his masterpieces, "El Jaleo" (1882), and built a special palace for it in Boston that is now the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum. Sargent painted his last portrait of her in watercolor when she was 82, wrapped in white fabric, called "Mrs. Gardner in White"(1920). 

Later Career and Legacy

By 1909 Sargent had grown tired of portraits and catering to his clients and began painting more landscapes, watercolors, and working on his murals. He was also asked by the British government to paint a scene commemorating World War I and created the powerful painting, "Gassed" (1919), showing the effects of a mustard gas attack.

Sargent died on April 14, 1925 in his sleep of heart disease, in London, England. In his lifetime he created approximately 900 oil paintings, more than 2,000 watercolors, innumerable charcoal drawings and sketches, and breathtaking murals to be enjoyed by many. He captured the likenesses and personalities of many fortunate enough to be his subjects, and created a psychological portrait of the upper class during the Edwardian period. His paintings and skill are still admired and his work exhibited around the world, serving as a glimpse into a bygone era while continuing to inspire today's artists.

Following are a few of Sargent's well-known paintings in chronological order: