Book Description

The subject of John Singer Sargent's most famous painting was twenty-three-year-old New Orleans Creole Virginie Gautreau, who moved to Paris and quickly became the "it girl" of her day. A relative unknown at the time, Sargent won the commission to paint her; the two must have recognized in each other a like-minded hunger for fame.

Unveiled at the 1884 Paris Salon, Gautreau's portrait generated the attention she craved-but it led to infamy rather than stardom. Sargent had painted one strap of Gautreau's dress dangling from her shoulder, suggesting either the prelude to or the aftermath of sex. Her reputation irreparably damaged, Gautreau retired from public life, destroying all the mirrors in her home.

Drawing on documents from private collections and other previously unexamined materials, and featuring a cast of characters including Oscar Wilde and Richard Wagner, Strapless is a tale of art and celebrity, obsession and betrayal. AUTHORBIO: Deborah Davis is a writer and veteran film executive who has worked as story editor and analyst for Warner Bros., Columbia TriStar, Disney, Miramax, and the William Morris Agency. ... Read more

Book Description

Collection of portraits, selected from public and private holdings by art historian Trevor J. Fairbrother, reveal the technical skill and intuitive eye for which American portrait painter John Singer Sargent is renowned. Drawings in pencil, pastels and charcoal—a lesser-known aspect of Sargent’s oeuvre—are shown. List of Plates. Introduction. Captions.
... Read more

Reviews (6)

Very Enjoyable Collection
This book is one of the best among those in the Dover Art Library. I really like this book because the selection includes many beautifully executed portraits. Sargent's style is at once both romantic and incisive. The portraits are so highly expressive that one is compelled to assume accurate likeness.

John Singer Sargent is a great master of portraiture. This very enjoyable collection does him justice.

John Singer Sargent's drawings are off the hook!
Sargent was very talented in the art of drawing. He drew at least 1,500 drawings throughout his long, busy artistic career. His portrait drawings of prominent people are beautiful and very realistic. I liked his drawing of Consuelo Yznaga, Duchess of Manchester. That drawing captured the expression of a vibrant middle aged woman. His nude figures are still the most magnificent expression of manhood. I recommend this book to those who are interested in the many talents of John Singer Sargent or artists looking for inspiration.

The more intimate sketches of a society painter.
The Amazon page-listing for this volume is somewhat misleading - there ARE two pages of text (Selector Trevor J. Fairbrother's brief, insightful introduction), but there are also 42 pages of (paper) plates.

Often dismissed as a mere society portrait painter, the real poignancy of John Singer Sargent's work lay in the truth that the society he recorded was on the point of vanishing with the Great War. This sense is heightened by the form of the works reproduced here - drawings composed in pencil and charcoal. Their Cheshire-Cat-grin sketchiness, the way faces seem to materialise or dematerialise bodiless or skeletal on the page, gives them an overwhelmingly ghostly feel.

The most moving pictures here are of the now-forgotten heiresses, young wives, fresh-faced soldiers, and indulgent or austere parents, refugees from the fiction of Henry James, Edith Wharton and Proust, denied the immortality conferred on Singer's more famous subjects, such as Nijinsky, Myra Hess, Faure or Kenneth Grahame. Singer may not be as remorselessly analytical as his literary peers, but he has a wit, satiric sense and emotional empathy all of his own, burrowing out the melancholy behind the glittering facades. Singer seems particularly inspired by long, swan-like necks, as if their owners' beauty already sang their death. The notorious hostess Mme. Pierre Gautreau reclines on a sofa, bored and miserable as a beached mermaid; Nellie Huxley stares at us with sad, tired eyes.

Conversely, the portraits of imperious grandes dames, such as the Myrna Loy-like Mme. Eugenia Huici Errazuriz, are surprisingly sexy; while the Duchess of Marlborough flirts with gamine charm. Portraits of friends, such as the eccentric composer Dame Ethel Smyth, are more informal and playful. Androgyny is another favourite theme, while the unsigned portrait of working class Italian youth Olimpio Fusco glows with sympathetic homoeroticism. In fact, Singer's defining temperament, judging from this collection, is one of amused curiosity, as he sketches the garish and the gloomy, the restless and the resigned, the social and the solitary.

The sketches of notables are often great fun - a shadow-darkened W.B. Yeats as self-regarding buffoon; Jascha Heifitz in an intense tondo of fiddle-like scribbles, encircling a still white face rapt in concentration; Viscountess Astor lost in folds of Napoleonic grandeur; and a young Ernest Thesiger, displaying impish hints of his most famous future film role, as Dr. Pretorious in 'Bride of Frankenstein'.

You can learn from these drawings, for sure.
I vision perhaps there are three "kinds" of readers that can benefit from this book.

1) Those who want to learn to copy drawings from the great masters, for practice (to improve drawing skill) or pleasure (to display or show them to their admirers), or both.

2) Those who like to collect works by the great masters.

3) Those who are, like me, looking to see how this portraitist genius (i.e. John Singer Sargent) treats contrast, light, shadow, edges, and so on, in his drawings. They are all in there, for a good price.

Sargent Portrait Drawings : 42 Works

If anything at all, _this_ IS the John Singer Sargent book to buy!

John Singer Sargent has once again exemplified his skills as an artist through his GORGEOUS portrait drawings.

Unlike other artists, Sargent conveys emotion - passion - with his use of line, stroke, and tone incomparable to any other artist. (Believe me, Sargent is the Artist of Portraiture). This book inspired my art teacher to go into portraiture. This is perhaps the best collection of Sargent's line work. These 42 Works are VERY resourceful for the drawing student and very enjoyable for the viewer/reader. Sketches depict a wide variety of people (people focused in the fine arts - actors, writers, etc.).

A majority of these portrait drawings are done in charcoal; a few are done in pencil. This book includes an introduction by Trevor J. Fairbrother.

This book is also VERY affordable (gotta love the folks at Dover), so if you decide to take one apart for use as reference, you can always buy another. ^-^

Buy this. You won't be disappointed! ... Read more

Book Description

This sumptuous book is the third volume of the definitive catalogue raisonnŽ of the work of the American painter John Singer Sargent (1856-1925). Comprising over two hundred portraits and portrait sketches in oil and watercolor painted between 1900 and the artist's death in 1925, this book completes the trilogy of portrait volumes.The catalogued works have been grouped into two chronological sections, each with an introduction that sets the particular group in context. There is also a section of undated portraits and an appendix listing previously unrecorded works. Each work is documented in depth: entries include traditional data about the painting or watercolor; details of the work's provenance, exhibition history, and bibliography; a short biography of the sitter; a discussion of the circumstances in which the work was created; and a critical discussion of its subject matter, style, and significance in Sargent's career. Most of the works are reproduced in color. There is also an illustrated inventory of Sargent's studio props and accessories and a cross-referenced checklist of the portraits in which they appear. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

He Only Gets Better!!
I wasn't sure that volume 3 could live up to the beauty of the first two volumes, but it certainly does, even surpassing them in some ways. Sargent has honed his skills as a portrait painter to such an extent that, in many of these paintings, all that's left is the essence of what he wanted to convey about a sitter. Like any artist, he has his ups and downs, but when he's good it's absolutely breathtaking. These three volumes are all magnificent, among my favorite art books I've ever seen. The vast majority are in color, and the writing about each painting is always interesting, including references from critics, diaries, and even photos of him painting. On page 102 is the wonderful portrait of Mrs. Fiske Warren and her Daughter, Rachel. Next to it are photos of Sargent painting them! Wow!
This is a book, like the first two volumes, that you can return to over and over again. It always has a new detail or personality to interest you. Also, if you like Sargent, get the book "Sargent Abroad" which concentrates more on his outdoor work. I'm not sure any other artist ever had such a natural talent, to be able to paint so many different subjects so well. ... Read more

Book Description

The name of John Singer Sargent evokes paintings of marvelously gowned Edwardian belles, of brooding aristocrats and princes of industry--insightful portraits executed with dazzling virtuosity.

Sargent's enduring popularity has prompted a thoughtful reappraisal by prominent art critic Carter Ratcliff, who shows us the surprising breadth of the artist's work. Never before has a book so thoroughly represented that variety: 110 lavish color plates and more than 200 halftones convey the brilliance of his portraits, the exuberance of his watercolors, the stately pomp of his murals. It is perhaps the watercolors that are most exciting to contemporary eyes--bold, spontaneous, and vividly hued, they have a breathtaking immediacy.

Born in Florence in 1856 to American parents, Sargent spent a nomadic childhood before going to Paris to study painting. He learned quickly and by the 1880s had begun the steady climb to fame that ultimately placed him at the center of his world, with a circle of friends and rivals that included Henry James, Claude Monet, and James McNeill Whistler. When Sargent died in 1925, a childhood companion wrote in her memorial that "the summing up of a would-be biographer must, I think be: He painted." It is the strikingly beautiful results of that lifelong devotion to his art that glow throughout the pages of this incomparable book.

Other Details:
338 illustrations, 110 in full color. 256 pages. 11 x 13" trim size. Published in 2001. ... Read more

Reviews (3)

Not a bible but a book of John Singer Sargent
This heavily packed artbook of John Singer Sargent's work is worth buying for any American impressionist fans. Every page is full of excellent descriptions and backgrounds of his work and life. Not to forget the colourful pages of Sargent's painting and drawings. However, if you want a complete book or at least a heavy packed bible about Sargent and his works, well, this book wouldn't satisfy you much. This is a book more of an introductory and coffeetable book for the regular art audience.

An absolutely fine piece of visual reference
Most likely the best book about Sargent published to date. The colours are brilliant. The text well constructed. The visual detail is quite thorough. If one's to purchase only one book about Sargent this is the one.

great rational art writing
It's nice to find a book on the subject of painting wherein the writing is almost as good as the painting described. Carter Ratcliff has a fluid, no-nonsense style that helps the reader to understand J.S. Sargent and his milieu. ... Read more

Book Description

This magnificent book is the first volume of the definitive catalogue raisonn_ of the works in oil, watercolor, and pastel of the beloved painter John Singer Sargent. This volume catalogues portraits by Sargent from 1874, when he began his training in Paris, and covers pictures painted while he was establishing his reputation in Paris, during his early years in England, and on his first professional visit to America in 1887. ... Read more

Reviews (7)

Just Amazing........
This book is for Sargent lovers. His incredible talent oozes in these pages. I can't wait for Vol 2 of this beautiful production of Yale University Press. I got me a magnifying glass and have spent hours looking at the unbelievably grand flesh tones that Sargent commanded. You'll love reading the background data of these portrait commissions during Sargent's career. I would give it six stars if I could. See it to believe it.....if I could only paint like he did or anything barely close. One of my best of collection. Hurry up Yale and give us Vol 2.

i can't wait for vol 2!
i bought this book after seeing the sargent show at the met in new york. i have been studing it ever since. mr ormand, ms. kilmurray please hurry. you have brought the works of this great american master to life as no one has done before and i look forward in anticipation to vol 2.

Simply amazing
Now, all art books should be judged by the standard this publication sets. All colored reproductions. To reproduce paintings in black and white is just criminal, and the people responsible for this book understands that. I simply can't wait for the rest of the volumes. I can't think of another artist more deserving of this royal treatment(Well, if they can do this for J.W. Waterhouse, I'd die happy).

Sargent complete paintings volume 1
For lovers of Sargent's art there can be no more welcome arrival than this superbly researched, illustrated and produced volume, the first of 5 that will form the great artist's Catalogue raisonnée. Displayed to readers for the first time are many works from the dawn of Sargent's career, from private collections, to those on the threshhold of his great international successes, all displaying the artist's characteristic virtuosity of manner, and acute psychological penetration into the depiction of his sitters, from the most humble to the most exalted. The paintings' histories and provenances make for engrossing reading, and whet the appetite for the subsequent volumes. Often a small detail in a little-known work will give as great a sense of enjoyment as that from one of the celebrated paintings. Sargent-lovers, rejoice!

Most Excellent!
I received this book as a Christmas present from my girlfriend. The reproductions are excellent. My only complaints are the tiny reproductions of related paintings and drawings and the long paragraphs of French quotes. Other than that this book is required reading for all Sargent fans. Hopefully some day someone will publish more books on Sargent's pencil and pen & ink drawings.C. Ousley ... Read more

Book Description

In this beautiful book, Trevor Fairbrother argues that viewing JohnSinger Sargent as a sensualist connects otherwise conflicting elements of his oeuvre andoffers a new interpretation of his life and work. The book is lavishly illustrated withexamples of the artist's oils, watercolors, and sketches, and it includes a little-knownseries of expressive charcoal drawings of male nudes, here published together in color forthe first time.Published in association with the Seattle Art Museum ... Read more

Reviews (3)

Fleshing out John Singer Sargent
The current re-evaluation of the contributions of John Singer Sargent to the art of the USA, as indicated by the impressive exhibition "Sargent And Italy" currently in Los Angeles, the steady flow of new books about his work, and the academic resurgence of emphasis on his importance in American art at the turn of the last century - this re-evaluation has been truly underscored by this very fine book by Trevor Fairbrother. Written with great style and zest, the author explores the sensual nature of an artist once considered a 'society portraitist', a good painter but one more concerned with reaping the wealth from his gifts than in painting for art's sake. Well, bury that prejudice, as Fairbrother reveals Sargent's preoccupation with the human body, not only elegantly clothed but sensually nude. A fine example is "Nude Study of Thomas E. McKellar" in which Sargent paints his favorite African American model in a beautifully erotic pose.

But the sensuality does not stop with the plethora of nude figure studies. Indeed, the author demonstrates how Sargent's compositions of landscapes and buildings as well as outdor and indoor groups of people are rendered with a sensual manipulation of light and pigment. And much time and discussion focuses on the famous painting 'El Jaleo' of a flamenco dancer barely visible in the artificial light of the stage, making her sensual movements of the hands and wrists ring like the music accompanying her.

This well written book is lavishly illustrated with excellent color reproductions and gifts us with a significant body of work at book's end - a folio of male nudes called "Album of Figure Studies" which alone is worth the price of this superb volume.
Highly recommended.

The Best Sargent Book Ever!
I'm a big Sargent fan. Fairbrother have done an unbiased work on Sargent. All his life, Sargent have always been attractive to the exotic, the bizarre, and the supernation and loved color and gaiety in his life. In his early paintings, he had painted many ethnic women including Rosina Ferrara, whom I've compared her to Chilli of TLC and I have two websites dedicated to both Chilli and Rosina Ferrara. He painted beautiful, lively gypsy women remininscent of Carmen, which was played around the same era as Sargent. His book is a wealth of pictures and sketches never seen before. Especially his book of nudes, which he had done when he wasn't busy painting wealthy patrons. Those sketches were realistic and, of course, very sensual for those with an open mind. It's a treat for those who are really interested in this brilliant artist.

a sensual book...
This is a wonderful book for any lover of Sargent's work. I have quite a few monographs on Sargent, and this one contains work which I have not seen before. It focuses on every aspect of his ouvre, from portraits, landscapes, genre, and figurative studies. Not only do the selected works represent the sensuality that eminates from Sargent's hand and mind, but the layout of the actual book reflects this also. The last section of the book is devoted to some of his male figure charcoal studies, which are incredibly inspiring. They are printed on laid paper (different from the rest of the book), and have a beautiful quality to them. Most of them are even different drawings than those reproduced in the "Sargent: Male Nudes" book. This is very refreshing to see, as the drawings bring us right into the studio with Sargent, almost looking over his shoulder while he renders the figure with unwavering power and finesse.... ... Read more

Book Description

This extravagantly illustrated catalogue--published in association with a major exhibition--evokes the romantic fascination with Italy that glimmers in the work of John Singer Sargent.

Sargent, heralded on both sides of the Atlantic, was one of the most creative American artists of the late nineteenth century. Born in Florence to American parents living abroad, he retained a deep and lifelong connection to the country famed for its ability to get "ineradicably in one's blood." Sargent vacationed frequently in Italy, and most of the works he created there were painted not for commission but out of his artistic passion for Italy's people, land, and culture. Often hauntingly powerful, they range from dramatically painted genre scenes of Italian peasants and saturated landscapes that celebrate the beauty of the Italian countryside to portraits of other Anglo-American expatriates and tourists, including Henry James and Edith Wharton.

The majority of works are of Italian sites, including well-known tourist spots but also the quieter, more isolated locales that Sargent sought out. His subjects include magnificent Italian gardens with their ancient and Baroque statuary, Rome's Neoclassical and Renaissance buildings, urban street scenes, the Italian Alps, and, of course, Venetian canals. Sargent found Venice particularly alluring, and the city well suited the watercolor medium in which he worked most often in Italy. His use of vivid colors, brushwork that varied from soft and fluid to bold and dashing, and an overwhelming sense of light and air characterize his Italian scenes--and rank Sargent as one of the finest watercolorists of all time. His later Italian works, some in watercolor and others in oil, reveal an artist who relished his materials and made art purely for art's sake. Both beautiful and informative, this lavish volume includes eighty-five color and fifty black-and-white images. It adds a new dimension to our appreciation of Sargent's art and will delight anyone who loves Italy, as Sargent so passionately did.

EXHIBITION SCHEDULE

Palazzo dei Diamanti, Ferrara
September 22, 2002-January 6, 2003

Los Angeles County Museum of Art
February 9-May 11, 2003

Denver Art Museum
June 28-September 21, 2003

... Read more

Reviews (3)

dissatisfied with reproductions
Ordered unseen and then attended exhibit. I was dissatisfied with color prints before exhibit and really disappointed afterwards. A graphic artist friend refused to buy the book after seing the color reproductions

reproductions are not what i expected
I just returned with a friend from the Sargent and Italy exhibit , and I had purchased this book before going and thought the repoductions lacked vibrancy and did little for me, and after seeing the exhibit my thoughts were confirmed and I was even more disappointed , and a friend of mine who is a retired graphic artist and attended the exhibit would not purchase the book based on the reproductions

Appeals to the Eye and to the Intellect
SARGENT IN ITALY does what many catalogues set out to accomplish but few achieve - document a magnificent exhibition while creating an art history book of great substance. The catalogue for the travelling exhibition SARGENT AND ITALY mirrors the elegance of the painter's touch, the intense infatuation and observation of the painter's favorite places (Venice in particular), and the intellectual atmosphere in which all of these works were created. Everyone knows of John Singer Sargent's finesse with the portraits of the wealthy and with figure painting in the studio and out on location, but few have the knowledge that Sargent found just as much life and senusality in the landscape as he did in the beautifully gowned patronesses of his career. Author Robertson is careful to include the treasurable quotes from the works of Henry James and other writers which flank many of the paintings in the exhibition and in the book. James and Sargent were close friends and colleagues, and that quality of shared observation helps make this show and this book the successes they are. The only minor flaw in the book is the quality of color reproduction which tends toward the muddy, dim side - hardly what this painter of light was all about. But the paintngs here are in other volumes where they are not as graced with the written word as they are here. A fine exhibition and a very fine catalogue/book. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Just beautiful color and grand pictures.....
These are some of Sargent's most beautiful compositions and color galore. He was an amazing portrait artists and still, these landscapes are out of this world. His command of the painting media was genius........sheer genius. You'll love the beauty of these pictures. The more Sargent I see.......the more I have to rub my eyes to be sure anyone could be that good. ... Read more

Book Description

This gorgeous book is the second volume of the definitive catalogue raisonné of the work of the American painter John Singer Sargent (1856-1925).It comprises over onehundred and fifty formal portraits and portrait sketches in oil and watercolor that he painted between 1889 and 1900.The catalogued works have been grouped into chronological sections, each with its own introduction to set the particular group in context.In addition, an overall introduction places Sargent in the context of European portraiture of the past and of his own time.

Each work is documented in depth: entries include traditional data about the painting or watercolor; details of the work's provenance, exhibition history and bibliography; a short biography of the sitter; a discussion of the circumstances in which the work was created; and a critical discussion of its subject matter, style, and significance in Sargent's career.With very few exceptions, all the works are reproduced in color.There is also an illustrated inventory of Sargent's studio props and accessories and a cross-referenced checklist of the portraits in which they appear. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

The one we've all been waiting for!
Fantastic book, a must-have. The color reproduction is superb, the scholarship is facinating, it is as close to perfect as one could get.

Absolutely fabulous
The best Sargent book yet. Volume I was good but volume II is even better. This volume covers the 1890's when the artist really got into his stride as a portrait painter and the paintings are magnificent.

The book is well set out with at least one illustration to a page often with portrait sketchs and background information if available. The quality of the reproductions is very good (as in volume I) and the information clear and well structured.

A must buy for Sargent fans (even if like me you thought you didn't need volume II because you already had volume I). The authors have done a great job. ... Read more

Amazon.com

The beauty and gentle eroticism of John Singer Sargent's paintings and drawings of nude males are the raison d'être of this otherwise somewhat slight book. Most are exquisitely languid, with such tender touches as a pink tinge on the buttocks of a boy lying prone on a beach in Capri, or two intimate "tommies"--privates in the World War I British Army--napping on a riverbank after a swim, heads together. Then there are a few nude wrestling matches, à la Eadweard Muybridge and D.H. Lawrence. And, as the author somewhat frantically insists, there are works that possess an "uplifting and spiritual aspect."

The wonder is that Sargent's sisters preserved these works--which the artist had kept private--after his death. They are thrilling, as much for Sargent's astonishing facility with a brushload of color as for the sensuous subjects. The essay may be skipped by readers who wince when informed that any subject of a society portrait by Sargent was "transformed into a fashionable denizen of the Edwardian age, whomever he was." Author John Esten sniffs prissily at the suggestion that Sargent may have harbored homoerotic feelings, while the works themselves often unabashedly focus on the genitalia of the models, and the ones that don't are filled with the kind of closeness and warmth of observation that makes the model's soft skin seem almost palpable. Linger over the book's 18 color plates, which are a lasting, luscious pleasure; the scores of black-and-white drawings are similarly inspired. --Peggy Moorman ... Read more

Reviews (6)

Images that speak for themselves
It's hard to believe there was a time when the images in this book would have been considered pornographic. But if Singer's portrait of Madame Pierre Gautreau ("Madame X") was considered scandalous because he painted her with a dropped shoulder strap (later repainted in its proper position), then you can understand why these male nudes (mostly charcoal sketches and quick watercolors, but also some finished oil paintings) were kept unexhibited for so long. We have Sargent's sisters to thank that they were not destroyed outright, but carefully placed with museums for safekeeping.

If text is the clothing of art books, then Donna Hassler has provided THE MALE NUDES with less than a loin cloth. But there's not much that needs to be said, anyway. The plates should be enjoyed in their own right. I especially enjoyed the charcoal drawings. They are contextless and their strong outlines give them extra punch and a sense of iconic completeness. Though well rounded and subtly shaded, they remind me somehow of Jean Cocteau's spirited line drawings. The watercolors reminded me of Winslow Homer's. All in all, a nice little book.

John singer Sargent: The Male nudes
For anyone who is a figurative painter, this book is a must have. John Singer Sargent is the Father of watercolor but we rarely see his nudes in books or in museum exhibitions. The color plates are breathtaking and serve as an inspiration to all professional artists. This is a small book but in my opinion well worth the money.

"Long Hidden from the Public"
This is a beautiful book that I truly enjoyed. Not being a critic, but just a lover of fine art, I found this long hidden selection of John Singer Sargent's male nudes fascinating, and beautiful produced. There are drawings in black & white and many in color in this fine selection. This book was published on the occasion of Sargent's major retrospect that traveled to several major galleries in 1999.

Sargent began some of these drawings in his adolescence, and continued drawing male nudes throughout his career. However, they were never exhibited or seen by many other people until now. Some of the models became enduring friends with the artist, and remained by his side during his entire lifetime. There is a wonderful introduction that is very helpful in understanding this very talented and creative artist. I highly recommend this book to anyone that knows and enjoys Sargent's artistic work. For those of you who don't, this is a great introduction!

The glory of the nude male revealed despite the times.....
John Singer Sargent is admired as one of this country's premiere portrait artists and museums clamor for any new Sargent that comes on the auction block. His stately Edwardian ladies and gentlemen are elegance personified. Yet as we slowly discover the private lives and portfolios of some of our nation's brightest lights in painting, we uncover other aspects of their gifts. Sargent's Male Nudes are here displayed in all their brilliance of line and tenderness of demeanor that only emphasizes Sargent's fondness for the male figure. Though the author (John Esten) does not dwell on the evidence of these homoerotic drawings and paintings, he gently offers the works themselves in the same context with the works of Thomas Eakins and the literature of Henry James and allows us to piece together the private, closeted lives they all shared. This is a brief but elegant and tender collection of works that deserve a much wider audience.

Full of Graceful Figures
As someone that admired Sargent's beautiful figure and portrait drawings before he was recently "rediscovered", and someone that admires, as well, 19th century male figure drawings, I was very happy to see this little gem. I liked the fact that watercolor, charcoal and oil paintings were included. I would have prevered a large size volume but this book is a good value. I think art students on a budget will appreciate the economy of this book. I hope Universe puts out a series on the figure drawings of some of the great artists such as Eakins and Degas. ... Read more

Book Description

A brilliant painter of society portraits, John Singer Sargent also devoted many years at the height of his career to a project of an entirely different order: an ambitious, multi-media decoration titled Triumph of Religion (1890-1919) for the Boston Public Library. The library cycle Sargent imagined as his most important work, however, would ultimately remain unfinished, quietly abandoned in the face of religious opposition, one critical painting short of completion. Truncation dramatically altered possible readings of Triumph, redirecting its narrative energies and generating new meanings in tension with the idea Sargent had proposed. In Painting Religion in Public, Sally Promey tells the story of an artist of international stature and the complex and consuming pictorial program he pursued in Boston. Highly celebrated in its day, with individual panels retaining immense popularity even in the years of discord, this artistic project and its constituent images tell us much about broad cultural and political exchanges concerning the public representation of religious content in the United States.

Sargent's library decoration attracted the attention of multiple audiences and engaged concurrent debates about class, race, art, and religion. Representatives of various religious and cultural backgrounds hailed portions of the cycle as indicative of the strength of their own positions, and reproductions of the images appeared in everything from books and encyclopedias to stained glass and public pageantry. Promey analyzes the conception and production of the cycle, persuasively demonstrating that Triumph of Religion, far from promoting a narrowly sectarian version of religious practice, represented instead Sargent's public recommendation of the privacy of modern belief. The artist recast contemporary religion as spirituality, she argues, linking it not with institutions and dogma but with personal subjectivity. For Sargent, this ideal was a sign of Western, especially American, progress. Carefully reconstructing patterns of reception in an increasingly diverse religious climate, and exploring the extent and character of Sargent's personal and artistic investment, Promey boldly illuminates the work Sargent hoped to make his masterpiece. At the same time, she enriches understanding of religious images in public places and popular imagination. ... Read more

Reviews (5)

Sargent at the Boston Public Library
Although lacking in adequate color plates as expressed by a previous reviewer, this text is wonderful in its description of the history of the mural which took Sargent 30 years and was never completed probably because of the controversy arising out of how religion was viewed in public in 1919, a change from when Sargent started it in 1890. The book describes the history of the mural in the context of its time of diverse social, cultural and religious matters. After viewing the actual mural at the Boston Public Library, where it is, unfortunately, covered with dirt but is being restored and cleaned, one will be overwhelmed with this painting and find the book extremely interesting and full of important historical information, as well as understand why this mural is considered one of the most important pieces of public art.

Fascinating!
Promey leads the reader on an insightful exploration of Sargent's artistic and spiritual investment in _Triumph of Religion_. This book has changed the way I look at religious art in public places.

Terrific!
A fascinating book -- a major contribution to the history of American visual culture! This is a Sargent I hadn't seen before! The wealth of visual material in Promey's book (works of art, preparatory sketches and studies, photographs, prints, cartoons) provides testimony that Sargent's art was deeply informed by the culture of its time. It was also, as Promey shows, responsive to the artist's own intellectual and personal commitments. Highly recommended!

Great book! Compellingly narrated, beautifully illustrated
This is a convincing, original, and highly readable book. I've seen Sargent's Boston Public Library murals--now obscured by dirt and grime--many times. It was a real treat to see them in Promey's book, restored to their initial splendor. (I look forward to their scheduled restoration too.) I read this book because the Boston Globe art critic called it a "dazzling must-read." And she was right!

If only there were decent plates...
Anyone purchasing this book sight unseen will be profoundly disappointed with the overwhelming lack of clear color plates. Imagine a book about a basically unpublished subject of great interest and having it deny the reader a full experiential exploration of the works described. This book is suitable for the art historian only . Art lovers expecting a long needed color plate book about Sargent's mural masterpieces will have to wait longer. Too bad! ... Read more

Amazon.com

An expatriate American living in England, John Singer Sargent was an immensely gifted artist and the leading international portraitist of his day. He produced his magnificent oil paintings of the social elite after lengthy preparations that included numerous studies and sketches. American Drawings and Watercolors in the Metropolitan Museum of Art: John Singer Sargent presents the Met's collection of four sketchbooks and 337 single sheets by Sargent, from rough to highly finished designs. Many of the watercolors and a handful of the drawings are brilliant, but they are lesser works than the great paintings; this book is an important art-historical study rather than an art book.

Two introductory essays describe the formation of the collection and the artist's techniques. The material is divided into four sections covering Sargent's childhood, early career, professional activity, and travel, each introduced by details of the artist's life. The drawings provide useful contexts for his major paintings. For example, intimate sketches of Madame Gautreau, the sitter for his portrait Madame X, whose scandalously low shoulder strap led to the closing of Sargent's Paris studio, clarify the narrative that precedes the section "Student Years and Early Career, 1874-89." Watercolors from his visit to the frontlines during World War I include naked soldiers bathing; these and other material have led to speculation about Sargent's sexual orientation, which is beginning to attract critical analysis. The complex material is extensively and intelligently footnoted, and a chronology of Sargent's life, exhibitions, and a bibliography round out the book's encyclopedic scholarship. The first of a series documenting the Met's collections of master-drawings, this book is a treasure-trove and an art historian's delight. --John Stevenson ... Read more

Book Description

John Singer Sargent (1856-1925) stands among the greatest of watercolor painters, along with J.M.W. Turner, Winslow Homer, and other masters of this difficult medium. Watercolor was more than a distraction from the portrait and mural commissions Sargent labored over; after 1900, watercolor became central to his artistic vision. His aquarelles are, simply stated, masterworks. Portraits, interiors, landscapes, architectural studies--Sargent's work in watercolor offers great variety of subject matter, ranging from Arab gypsies to World War I soldiers, to masterful depictions of Venetian churches, to Florida swamp alligators.

Sargent carried his watercolors on his travels; they were ideally suited to capturing the scene, the light, the air, wherever he found himself. This book serves as a record of his travels, featuring the paintings he produced in Palestine, Northern Africa, the Canadian Rockies, Italy, Switzerland, Spain, and Greece. Among specific locales were the islands of Majorca and Corfu; Florence, Venice, Carrara, Lake Garda, and Rome; the Alps; Lake O'Hara; the coast of Maine and the Miami River.

Sargent's bold and often experimental use of the medium, which sometimes led to semi- abstract images, compels admiration among contemporary painters as well as museum goers today. In addition to placing Sargent's accomplishments in the context of his life and time, Carl Little discusses the artist's extraordinary watercolor technique. ... Read more

Reviews (4)

Inspiring and Challenging reproductions by a Master of light
Sargent's inspirations were Velasquez, Hals, Rubens. These were painters who understood the play of light. And they had a worthy apprentice in JSS.He understands that it is light that is the unifier of all his paintings, regardless of theme. JSS painted in watercolour for his own pleasure. (His mother taught him the medium at an early age). His brilliant mastery of both technique, light and sumptious colour are all captured in the reproductions in this book. Like others who have reviewed the book I return to it again and again. Happy pictures by a Mozart of the medium. How could you not buy it?

An all-time Favorite
I turn to this book time and again and am always astounded at the paintings. In his watercolor work, Sargent was a "Painter's Painter" - an artist who worked with paint so playfully, with color so passionatly, with caligraphic brushwork so seemingly irreverent - that the final effect is breathtaking and as fresh as the moment it was painted.

Beautiful and informative
I agree that some reproductions are rather small but it is a beautiful and interesting book that makes a great Xmas present. I enjoyed following Sargent through his far away destinations !! I personally think he is underrated when compared to Winslow Homer !

lovely to look at
This book has fairly good reproductions of Sargent's watercolors. What I enjoy most is seeing many of his watercolors for the first time. My only complaint is that the book's smaller size limits how big the reproductions can be. Otherwise, this is a fantastic book. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

Great book for those who attended National Gallery exhibit
This wonderful paperback is a great buy for anyone who attended the National Gallery exhibit in Washington D.C. recently. The quality of the prints do a great job of capturing the beauty of Sargeant's work. The text is somewhat "high brow" for the layperson, but gives an interesting perspective regarding the works included in the exhibition. The book is an excellent way to remember the exhibit without spending a lot of money on a coffee-table type of book.

Wonderful book on Sargent
This is a very well put together and well printed interpretive work on the paintings of John Singer Sargent. The coverage is insightful and the quality of the printing is superb. It is the best companion publication to the exhibit which is currently held at the National Gallery in Washington, D.C. and later to appear in Boston. The official catalog of the exhibit disappoints as it leaves out a number of significant works that are covered under this volume. This is a must for any nineteenth century art enthusiasts and a must for fans of Sargent and portraiture in general. ... Read more

Book Description

John Singer Sargent, the celebrated portrait painter of the fashionable and famous of the fin de siècle and the Gilded Age, maintained the yearly routine, begun during his student days, of taking painting sabbaticals with a select company of artist friends and family, traveling as far east as Palestine and as far west as the Canadian Rockies. John Esten has assembled a stunning collection of drawings, paintings, and watercolors by Sargent-many of them rarely seen-of the friends and family that accompanied him on these holiday excursions. Sargent's works, along with selected paintings, watercolors, and photographs done by his friends in the locations where he painted them, have been further illuminated by descriptions of artists painting and outdoor places by Sargent's champion and life-long friend Henry James. All are sublime records of sunny, summer afternoons painted out-of-doors, published here for the first time in a single volume. ... Read more

Reviews (3)

Sargent: Painting Out-Of-Doors by John Esten
"... The whole problem with our contemporary art market, as I see it, is that our standards for professionalism have been too low. We have been missing the mark because we have been aiming at the wrong mark. Masters in plein air painting like Sargent, Sorolla, Courbet, Homer...are the historical standards for this type of work. A contemporary artist is not a Master Artist despite publicity labeling. A Master artist, can only be determined by the historical sorting out that takes place at the end of an era or epoch. If we set our standards by comparison of our work to contemporaries, whose work has not been proven in the historical context then our standards are open to question. This allows us to easily be mislead by marketing interests." Quote from Professional Plein Air Painters Discussion ...
... [this] is why I believe this book is so valuable, because everytime you go back to the historically proven source of information you can't help but improve your knowledge.

This book expressed Sargent's Outdoor Life
Sargent had deep love and respect for outdoors. His parents have instilled in him and his sisters their love of travel, the natural environment, and open-mindedness which naturally led him to a career in art, especially painting. This book tells about Sargent and his quest to constantly broaden his outlook on life by traveling and exploring different cultures and lifestyles other than the bourgeois world, which had molded him in his formative years. He had done at least 500 paintings depicting the outdoor life or landscapes/seascapes. Examples are "Alligators," "Corfu," "Fumee d'Ambergris," and the Venetian paintings of the 1880s. I would recommend this book to those with an open mind about this amazingly brilliant artist, whose pictures depicted late 19th century life around the world and whose talent has taken him to the farthest reaches of the world.

Review: Painting Out-Of-Doors

As a high school art student, money is tight and investing in expensive art books can be a pain. =-= However, this book truly is an excellent purchase.

From the dust jacket to the glossy high-quality pages, John Esten covers the span of Sargent's life, providing a sound background for someone who is unfamiliar with Sargent.

Regarding the images included in this book, there are a few less popular on-the-edge-of-rare pictures including a few paintings and drawings done by Sargent when he was a child/teen (which are coupled with his later watercolor and oil paintings). Note: A majority of the paintings in here are watercolor. (If you are looking for an affordable book which focuses on Sargent's oil paintings, I recommend "The Age of Elegance : The Paintings of John Singer Sargent.")

Commentaries by Sargent's closests friends and family accompany Esten's text. Other bonuses include photographs of Sargent painting, a watercolor done by his mother (an amateur artist), and drawings/paintings done by his friends.

(Important: this is NOT a picture book. Text and images are, for the most art, evenly distributed.)

If you enjoy Sargent's works or paintings filled with beautiful light, then this collection, is definitely worth every penny. ^-^ ... Read more

Amazon.com

John Singer Sargent (1856-1925), the famous portrait painter, spent his childhood traveling around Europe with his American expatriate parents. After studying at Paris's Ecole des Beaux Arts, he launched his career at the Paris Salon. But scandal ensued after he exhibited his most famous portrait, Madame X. The daring (at the time) picture of a beautiful socialite in a provocative dress, her shoulder strap slipping off, created such a stir among its viewers that Sargent eventually repainted the strap into a more proper position and relocated to London. There he continued portrait painting. Creating lush images full of light and incredible brushwork, "[He] breathed new life into the tradition of grand manner portraiture. Like his great predecessors he made his sitters look nobler, more beautiful than they were in reality.... What Sargent brought to the tradition that was new and different was his ability to infuse into his portraits a sense of the immediate and the actual, as if what we see before us is life unfolding as it really is." In 1907, the portraitist abandoned the craft and focused primarily on mural commissions, like the one for the Boston Public Library, and landscape painting.

This book, the catalog to a traveling exhibition that hits the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C., and the Boston Museum of Fine Arts, among other venues, includes three essays on Sargent's life and work and detailed background information for all the paintings shown. It is a manageable 285 pages, with 171 color and 85 black-and-white images. --Jennifer Cohen ... Read more

Reviews (10)

A fine addition to the catalog of books on Sargent
I own both the Ratcliffe book on Sargent and Sargent Abroad, and I find this book to be a fine addition to my library of Sargent books. Frankly, the criticisms here regarding the reproductions are greatly overstated, in my opinion. I have no quarrel with the reprductions in my copy, except that I would welcome more detail shots and a larger format for the book in general. The abundance of notes and the photos of Sargent and his studio (etc.) have to be appreciated by any serious student of Sargent.

overpriced
I saw this exhibit in DC last week and Sargent's works were so gorgeous that it's worth your time to see it twice and wait in line. But I have to admit a great sense of disappointment in this book because many reproductions are not true to the original. The colors were not as vivid- this is really noticeable in the watercolors which were duller copies of the originals. The stories are interesting, but you can get that from other Sargent books. This book is overpriced for what it offers because you won't be able to get a sense of Sargent's brilliant colors. One good thing about this book is that it had a color reproduction of several of Sargent's works that is not available in other books. If you're looking for a better book, I suggest "Sargent Abroad."

Great content, not so great reproductions.
First off, you will never be satisfied with any reproduction compared to the original painting. Sargent's paintings in the MFA in Boston looks like the paint was laid yesterday. But I have seen several reproductions of this work, the originals in the MFA and MOMA in NY, and of all the major books I have seen, this has the most disappointing reproductions. The colors seem muted and flat.
On the other hand, the information on each painting is great, and for specific info on his works in a one volume set, this can't be beat.

This is the best Sargent book so far
I have no idea what the others are complaining about. I compared this Sargent book side by side at a book store with other published Sargent books, and this one had the best reproduction by far. It is even better than "John Singer Sargent : The Early Portraits (The Complete Paintings , Vol 1)", which is by the same author and editor as this one. Make no mistake, this is the best book so far I've seen on Sargent. I'm not concerned about the writing since I'm a fan of Sargent because I'm a painter, and he's one of the best there ever was. Sure I'd read the text, but it's not nearly as important as the reproductions of his paintings. It's all about the paintings, and he is an artist. That's all that matters.

A satisfying book
I saw this exhibit at the Tate Gallery, London. The exhibit was terrific, though something seemed lacking in the over all presentation. Sargent is one overlooked watercolorist. He is one of the greatest, on an equal or superior platform to Homer. His Valasquez like eye made him a superior artist, though he seemed to get trapped in his facile technique in society portraits. Sargent is an amazing artist. One whose personal power has always been challenged by those that believe technique is secondary. Tell that to someone who appreciates his lively beautiful brushwork and intelligent landscapes. They won't buy it! The reproductions are not second rate as stated previously. They are rather good!The essays are good reading too. ... Read more

Reviews (6)

A small treasure to carry around
This little book of Sargent paintings is small enough to fit in the palm of one's hand, but in this case, size does not matter. I was drawn by this book's cover at the M.H. de Young Museum in San Francisco in late 2000, and was urged to by it by my art craving mind. I have to admit that it did have a few works of his I had not seen, so it is valuable in the sense to some die-hard fans (which I pretty much am of his). Like in the other reviews, this book is printed on great quality paper, has a dust jacket, and has a mini- biography with some different views on his life. It also has a detailed list in the back describing each painting shown. I believe it doesn't have a B/w photo, but I am not certain. Nevertheless, it is worth the small price. And, if you're a big fan of his, it never hurts to have a minature Sargent book to carry along :)

"A 'Sargent' is always a Sargent."
OK, so I plagiarize the common saying, "A 'Rembrandt' is not always a Rembrandt." But that is not the point. My points actually are the following:

1) This is a very small book (pocket edition) to present lifesize paintings (for the most part, anyway) done by Sargent. Therefore, some limitations are inevitable.

2) This book simply presents 100 paintings (including some drawings) by Sargent with occasionally some comments by different patrons. The book does NOT discuss the technical or historical aspect of the paintings, except for a biography of 8 pages in the back of the book.

3) If you are, like myself, hoping to have a little book of paintings (at an affordable price) by Sargent to quickly look up the way colors were used in his portraits, then this book serves the purpose. After all, "A 'Sargent' is always a Sargent.", no matter how small is it presented. However, if you are looking for more than a collection of small paintings, other books on Sargent of larger volume may be called for.

But what about scale?
One of the magical aspects of the portraits of John Singer Sargent is his cholce of scale. At times his Grande Dames were painted larger than life, his bon vivants narrow and elongated like the models themselves. Here all is compressed into home photograph size, as though these were taken during a visit to an exhibition in a crusty museum. But the joy of having so many of Sargent's elegant people greatfully reproduced in rich color and on fine quality paper makes the size more tolerable. And it is fitting to have the "commentary" be conversational Henry James parcels, since they were very close friends. This is not the definitive Sargent book, but until the price of the larger volumes is more accessible, this little book is a joy.

Review: The Age of Elegance : ...

The Age of Elegance : The Paintings of John Singer Sargent by John Singer Sargent is another very affordable book...

(Note: this is virtually a picture book.)

Sargent was well-known for his portraiture, and this book contains his elegant, famous oil paintings (including the one of Madame X). Zoom-ins/ups of paintings are overleaf (for nearly every painting). Quotes taken from numerous novels and papers by Sargent's very close friend Henry James, accompany the art works.

My only "complaint" is that a lot of these paintings are the more familiar ones. In other words, if you are a "fan" or own one of those expensive art books, more than likely you have seen the paintings which are showcased in this book. Also, a few of James' quotes get a bit long (but the rest fit the mood;)...

Other than that, there isn't really *anything* to lose! The cover has the title stamped in gold foil, and the paper is thick and glossy!

So... What are you waiting for?

Very Elegant and Informative Book
This book takes you into the rarefied world of elegance that typified the Gilded Age (1880-1920). Sargent has done an excellent job in portraying the lives of affluent individuals, especially the women. The men are portrayed as strong and stable. Women are painted as ultrafeminine reflections of their father's or husband's wealth and power. The Gilded Age represent the possiblities of upward mobility as exemplified by Andrew Carnegies, the Guggenheims, the Rockefellers, and the Browns(as in Molly Brown, whose husband struck rich out west in the 1890's). I recommend those who are interested in the artworks of the Gilded Age to read this book, it's interesting. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

A bit disappointed.
If its beautiful Sargent watercolors you are looking for, don't buy this book. The history and commentary of Sargent's work is very good, but I was a bit disappointed with the few watercolors chosen for this book. The other thing about the watercolors is that the author only shows the reader a small section of the painting. I guess I was looking for something different. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Gorgeous and Practical!
I've been carrying this book around in my purse all year, and friends are constantly admiring it. As a result, I've begun keeping a small supply of these little notebooks on hand for small rewards or gifts. They are a big hit with both children and adults, and make a wonderful, non-fussy thank-you present or remembrance. A great value! ... Read more