SARGENT AND SPAIN
NATIONAL GALLERY OF ART, Washington
October 2, 2022, through January 2, 2023
Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco, Legion of Honor
February 11–May 14, 2023
John Singer Sargent. Spanish Roma Dwelling, 1912, oil on canvas, framed: 91.44 x 111.76 x 11.43 cm (36 x 44 x 4 1/2 in.) image: 71.44 x 91.44 cm (28 1/8 x 36 in.) Addison Gallery of American Art, Phillips Academy, Andover, Massachusetts, gift of anonymous donor, 1931.13 Bridgeman Images
Captivated by Spain, John Singer Sargent painted stunning landscape views, detailed architectural studies, local people and traditions, dynamic flamenco dance scenes, and everyday moments of Spanish Roma life over the course of seven extended visits between 1879 and 1912.
HIGHLIGHTS
Spanish dancers and musicians
These works reveal Sargent’s interest in depicting the performing arts he enjoyed in Spain. Between 1879 and 1881, and again around 1890, this artist-connoisseur produced an extraordinary series of images of Spanish dancers and musicians, especially inspired by the traditions of Andalusia (southern Spain).
La Carmencita Dancing
John Singer Sargent. “La Carmencita Dancing”, 1890, oil on canvas.
overall: 137.16 x 88.9 cm (54 x 35 in.) Private collection
Study for “The Spanish Dance”
John Singer Sargent. Study for “The Spanish Dance”, c. 1879–1880, oil on canvas, overall: 48.58 x 39.69 cm
(19 1/8 x 15 5/8 in.) framed: 60.33 x 51.44 x 6.35 cm (23 3/4 x 20 1/4 x 2 1/2 in.) Private Collection
THE SKETCHES
Especially notable in this exhibition is the collection of sketches that can be considered masterpieces in their own right. Sargent has masterfully captured
the passion that the dance is executed by the dancers.
Sketches of Dancers
John Singer Sargent. “Sketches of Dancers”, c. 1879–1881? graphite on paper, overall: 57.79 x 22.86 cm (22 3/4 x 9 in.) each: 28.9 x 22.9 cm (11 3/8 x 9 in.) Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, Boston, recto
Sketches of Spanish Dancers Performing
John Singer Sargent. “Sketches of Spanish Dancers Performing”, c. 1879–1881? graphite on off-white wove paper, overall: 29.05 x 23.02 cm (11 7/16 x 9 1/16 in.) Harvard Art Museums/Fogg Museum, Gift of Mrs. Francis Ormond. Photo © President and Fellows of Harvard College
Sketch of a Dancer
John Singer Sargent. “Sketch of a Dancer”, c. 1879–1881? graphite on off-white laid paper, overall: 12.54 x 17.62 cm (4 15/16 x 6 15/16 in.) open: 40.01 x 13.18 x 8.89 cm (15 3/4 x 5 3/16 x 3 1/2 in.) Harvard Art Museums/Fogg Museum, Gift of Mrs. Francis Ormond- Photo © President and Fellows of Harvard College
Studies for “The Spanish Dance”
John Singer Sargent, Studies for “The Spanish Dance”, c. 1879–1880, graphite on off-white wove paper, overall: 27.94 x 38.26 cm (11 x 15 1/16 in.) Harvard Art Museums/Fogg Museum, Gift of Mrs. Francis Ormond. Photo © President and Fellows of Harvard College
Studies for the masterpiece “EL JALEO”
in the collection of Isabella Stewart Gardner in Boston
John Singer Sargent, “El Jaleo”, Oil on canvas, 232 x 348 cm (91 5/16 x 137 in.)
“El Jaleo” Sketch of Dancer
John Singer Sargent. Sketch of Dancer, after “El Jaleo”, c. 1882, graphite and watercolor on prepared clay-coated paper, overall: 25.72 x 13.97 cm (10 1/8 x 5 1/2 in.) mat: 48.9 x 36.2 cm (19 1/4 x 14 1/4 in.) Lent by The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Gift of Mrs. Francis Ormond, 1950 (50.130.139) Image copyright © The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Image source: Art Resource, NY
“El Jaleo” Study for Seated Woman’s Head
John Singer Sargent. Study for “El Jaleo”: Seated Woman’s Head, 1881, charcoal on paper, splatters of oil paint, overall: 23.5 x 34.61 cm (9 1/4 x 13 5/8 in.) Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, Boston
Detail of “El Jaleo” painting: Seated Woman’s Head
“El Jaleo”: Seated Musicians’ Heads and Hands
John Singer Sargent. Study for “El Jaleo”: Seated Musicians’ Heads and Hands, 1881, charcoal on paper, overall: 23.5 x 32.54 cm (9 1/4 x 12 13/16 in.) Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, Boston
Detail of “El Jaleo” painting: Seated Musicians’ Heads and Hands
Flamenco Dancers, Granada, 1912
Unknown, 20th Century. Flamenco Dancers, Granada, probably 1912, gelatin silver print on postcard stock (real photo postcard) Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, The John Singer Sargent Archive—Gift of Richard and Leonee Ormond. Photograph © 2022 Museum of Fine Arts, Boston
Spanish and Italian Folk-Songs Book
reproducing Sargent’s “The Spanish Dance”
Alma Strettell. Spanish and Italian Folk-Songs, 1887, book with photogravures, open: 19.37 x 27.94 x 5.08 cm (7 5/8 x 11 x 2 in.) closed: 19.37 x 14.92 x 3.81 cm (7 5/8 x 5 7/8 x 1 1/2 in.) image: 8.89 x 8.26 cm (3 1/2 x 3 1/4 in.) sheet: 19.37 x 14.92 cm (7 5/8 x 5 7/8 in.) mount angle: 15°- 2 in. rise on left. National Gallery of Art Library, Anonymous Gift
SARGENT PORTRAITS OF SPAIN
PEOPLE
La Carmencita
John Singer Sargent. “La Carmencita”, 1890, oil on canvas, overall: 229 x 140 cm (90 3/16 x 55 1/8 in.) framed: 259 x 170.5 cm (101 15/16 x 67 1/8 in.) Musée d’Orsay, Paris, Acquired in 1892. © RMN-Grand Palais / Art Resource, NY
A Spanish Woman
John Singer Sargent. “A Spanish Woman”, 1879–1880, oil on canvas,
overall: 55.88 x 45.72 cm (22 x 18 in.) Private Collection
Spanish Roma Woman
John Singer Sargent. “Spanish Roma Woman”, c. 1879–1882, oil on canvas,
overall: 73.66 x 60.01 cm (29 x 23 5/8 in.) framed: 91.76 x 79.06 x 9.84 cm (36 1/8 x 31 1/8 x 3 7/8 in.)
Lent by The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Gift of George A. Hearn, 1910 (10.64.10)
Image copyright © The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Image source: Art Resource, NY
A Spanish Figure
John Singer Sargent. “A Spanish Figure”, c. 1879–1880, oil on panel,
overall: 33.02 x 27.94 cm (13 x 11 in.) private collection
Chorrojumo (Mariano Fernández Santiago)
John Singer Sargent. “Chorrojumo” (Mariano Fernández Santiago), c. 1879, watercolor over graphite on paper, overall: 24.77 x 15.24 cm (9 3/4 x 6 in.) framed: 46 x 36 cm (18 1/8 x 14 3/16 in.) Private collection
Majorcan Fisherman
John Singer Sargent. “Majorcan Fisherman”, 1908, oil on canvas, framed: 89.54 x 74.93 x 6.67 cm
(35 1/4 x 29 1/2 x 2 5/8 in.) image: 69.85 x 54.61 cm (27 1/2 x 21 1/2 in.) private collection
Mosquito Nets
John Singer Sargent. “Mosquito Nets”, 1908, oil on canvas, framed: 92.08 x 107.32 x 7.62 cm (36 1/4 x 42 1/4 x 3 in.) unframed: 57.15 x 71.76 cm (22 1/2 x 28 1/4 in.) Detroit Institute of Arts, Founders Society Purchase
SARGENT PORTRAITS OF SPAIN
RELIGIOUSNESS
Sargent extensively explored and documented the religious imagery in Spain
that would later inspire him to paint the “Triumph of Religion” murals
at the Boston Public Library.
Sketch of a Spanish Crucifix
John Singer Sargent. “Sketch of a Spanish Crucifix”, c. 1879, oil on canvas, framed: 112 x 86 x 8 cm (44 1/8 x 33 7/8 x 3 1/8 in.)image: 91.44 x 65.41 cm (36 x 25 3/4 in.) Presented by Art Fund to The Zurbarán Trust to mark the re-opening of Auckland Castle in Bishop Auckland, England 2019
Saint with Dragon
John Singer Sargent. “Saint with Dragon”, c. 1895, watercolor over graphite on paper, overall: 43.18 x 32.39 cm (17 x 12 3/4 in.) mat: 50.48 x 40.01 cm (19 7/8 x 15 3/4 in.) mount: 50.8 x 40.3 cm (20 x 15 7/8 in.) private collection
St. Teresa of Ávila
John Singer Sargent. “St. Teresa of Ávila”, c. 1903, watercolor over graphite on o_-white wove paper,
overall: 36.99 x 25.24 cm (14 9/16 x 9 15/16 in.) Harvard Art Museums/Fogg Museum,
Gift of Mrs. Francis Ormond. Photo © President and Fellows of Harvard College
Sketch of a Spanish Madonna (detail)
John Singer Sargent. “Sketch of a Spanish Madonna”, c. 1879, oil on panel, overall: 34.93 x 26.04 cm
(13 3/4 x 10 1/4 in.) Lent by The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Gift of Mrs. Francis Ormond, 1950 (50.130.11)
Image copyright © The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Image source: Art Resource, NY
Astarte
John Singer Sargent. “Astarte”, 1893–1894, oil on canvas, overall: 91 x 60 cm (35 13/16 x 23 5/8 in.)
framed: 115.6 x 88.3 cm (45 1/2 x 34 3/4 in.) Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, Boston
Angels in a Transept, Study after Goya
John Singer Sargent. “Angels in a Transept”, Study after Goya, 1879, oil on panel,
overall: 33.02 x 24.13 cm (13 x 9 1/2 in.) On Loan, Private Collection
John Singer Sargent’s
“Triumph of Religion”
at the Boston Public Library
“Triumph of Religion” at the Boston Public Library, considered to be the artist masterpiece, is one of the most ambitious mural cycles in the history of American art.
“Sargent Hall” as an art installation (constructed between 1890 and 1919) Sargent painted the murals on canvas and enhanced their surfaces with relief materials such as plaster, papier mâché, metalwork, stencils and patterned cut-outs.
View of Sargent Hall
SARGENT VIEWS OF SPAIN
GENRE PAINTING
Women at Work
John Singer Sargent, “Women at Work”, c. 1912, oil on canvas, framed: 87.63 x 102.87 cm (34 1/2 x 40 1/2 in.)
image: 56.52 x 71.12 cm (22 1/4 x 28 in.) Private Collection; Seattle, Washington.
Image courtesy of A.J. Kollar Fine Paintings, LLC; Seattle, Washington
Under the Olives
John Singer Sargent, “Under the Olives”, 1908, oil on canvas, overall: 55.88 x 71.12 cm (22 x 28 in.) framed: 77.47 x 93.98 x 5.72 cm (30 1/2 x 37 x 2 1/4 in.) Cedarhurst Center for the Arts, Mount Vernon, Illinois, Gift of John R. and Eleanor R. Mitchell, 1973.1.54. Photograph by Daniel Overturf
Gathering Blossoms
John Singer Sargent. “Gathering Blossoms”, Valldemosa, Majorca, 1908, oil on canvas, framed: 100.97 x 85.73 x 8.89 cm (39 3/4 x 33 3/4 x 3 1/2 in.) unframed: 71.76 x 56.83 cm (28 1/4 x 22 3/8 in.) Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, Richmond, The James W. and Frances Gibson McGlothlin Collection, L2015.13.52.
© Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, Photo: Katherine Wetzel
The Studio—Spanish Dress (detail)
John Singer Sargent. “The Studio—Spanish Dress” (Study for Man and Woman on a Bed), c. 1880–1882, graphite on paper sheet: 24.45 x 34.61 cm (9 5/8 x 13 5/8 in.) Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, The John Singer Sargent Archive—Gift of Richard and Leonee Ormond. Photograph © 2022 Museum of Fine Arts, Boston
Café Scene, Seville (detail)
John Singer Sargent. “Café Scene, Seville”, 1879, graphite on paper, overall: 23.97 x 33.02 cm
(9 7/16 x 13 in.) Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, Boston
SARGENT VIEWS OF SPAIN
LANDSCAPES
Sierra Nevada
John Singer Sargent. “Sierra Nevada”, 1912, oil on canvas, overall: 55.88 x 64.77 cm (22 x 25 1/2 in.)
framed (approx.): 86.36 x 95.25 cm (34 x 37 1/2 in.) Barty Smith
White Ships
John Singer Sargent. “White Ships”, 1908, watercolor over graphite, with gouache and wax resist, on paper,
overall: 35.24 x 49.21 cm (13 7/8 x 19 3/8 in.) framed: 61.44 x 76.68 x 4.76 cm (24 3/16 x 30 3/16 x 1 7/8 in.)
Brooklyn Museum, Purchased by Special Subscription 09.846
Granada
John Singer Sargent. “Granada”, 1912, watercolor over graphite, with wax crayon, on white wove paper,
overall: 40.01 x 53.02 cm (15 3/4 x 20 7/8 in.) framed: 62.23 x 77.47 x 2.86 cm (24 1/2 x 30 1/2 x 1 1/8 in.)
Lent by The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Gift of Mrs. Francis Ormond, 1950 (50.130.80m)
Image copyright © The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Image source: Art Resource, NY
SARGENT VIEWS OF SPAIN
HOMES, VILLAGES AND GARDENS
Courtyard, Casa del Chapiz
John Singer Sargent. “Courtyard, Casa del Chapiz”, 1912–1913, oil on canvas, overall: 71.12 x 91.44 c (28 x 36 in.) framed: 95.25 x 114.94 x 5.08 cm (37 1/2 x 45 1/4 x 2 in.) Myron Kunin Collection of American Art.
Photo: Minneapolis Institute of Art
Cuadra (Stable)
John Singer Sargent. “Cuadra” (Stable), c. 1903, watercolor on paper, overall: 24.13 x 33.97 cm
(9 1/2 x 13 3/8 in.) Museo Sorolla, Madrid, inv. 01321
Street at Camprodón
John Singer Sargent. “Street at Camprodón”, Spain, 1892, watercolor over graphite, with gouache, on paper,
overall: 45.09 x 28.58 cm (17 3/4 x 11 1/4 in.) framed: 71.12 x 55.88 cm (28 x 22 in.) Private Collection
Driving in Spain
John Singer Sargent. “Driving in Spain”, c. 1903, watercolor over graphite on paper,
framed: 50.8 x 64.14 cm (20 x 25 1/4 in.) image: 34.93 x 48.26 cm (13 3/4 x 19 in.) private collection
Horses at Palma, Majorca
John Singer Sargent. “Horses at Palma”, Majorca, 1908, oil on canvas, unframed: 55.25 x 71.12 cm (21 3/4 x 28 in.)
framed: 73.03 x 88.27 x 5.72 cm (28 3/4 x 34 3/4 x 2 1/4 in.) Private collector c/o MK Fine Art
Pomegranates
John Singer Sargent. “Pomegranates”, Majorca, 1908, oil on canvas, overall: 72.39 x 55.88 cm (28 1/2 x 22 in.)
framed: 99.06 x 84.46 x 8.89 cm (39 x 33 1/4 x 3 1/2 in.) Anonymous lender
Gourds
John Singer Sargent. “Gourds”, 1908, watercolor over graphite, with gouache, on paper, overall: 33.5 x 50.01 cm
(13 3/16 x 19 11/16 in.) framed: 61.6 x 76.84 x 4.6 cm (24 1/4 x 30 1/4 x 1 13/16 in.)
Brooklyn Museum, Purchased by Special Subscription 09.822
SARGENT VIEWS OF SPAIN
ARCHITECTURE
Alhambra, Patio de los Arrayanes
John Singer Sargent. “Alhambra, Patio de los Arrayanes” (Court of the Myrtles), 1879, oil on canvas,
overall: 57.47 x 48.9 cm (22 5/8 x 19 1/4 in.) framed: 87 x 67 cm (34 1/4 x 26 3/8 in.) private collection
Escutcheon of Charles V of Spain
John Singer Sargent. “Escutcheon of Charles V of Spain”, 1912, watercolor over graphite on white wove paper, overall: 30.48 x 45.72 cm (12 x 18 in.) framed: 61.6 x 76.84 x 3.18 cm (24 1/4 x 30 1/4 x 1 1/4 in.) Lent by The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Purchase, Joseph Pulitzer Bequest, 1915 (15.142.11) Image copyright © The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Image source: Art Resource, NY
Spanish Fountain
John Singer Sargent. “Spanish Fountain”, 1912, watercolor over preliminary pencil on paper, with gouache,
overall: 53.34 x 34.61 cm (21 x 13 5/8 in.) The Syndics of the Fitzwilliam Museum,
University of Cambridge, PD.1-1971 © Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge
A Marble Fountain at Aranjuez
John Singer Sargent. “A Marble Fountain at Aranjuez”, 1912?, oil on canvas, image: 55.88 x 71.12 cm (22 x 28 in.)
framed (Approx): 78.74 x 83.82 cm (31 x 33 in.) Sharon P. and John D. Rockefeller IV
Palma, Majorca, West Front of the Cathedral
John Singer Sargent. “Palma, Majorca, West Front of the Cathedral”, 1908, watercolor over graphite on paper,
image: 53.34 x 35.56 cm (21 x 14 in.) mat: 66.04 x 49.53 cm (26 x 19 1/2 in.)
framed: 73.66 x 57.15 cm (29 x 22 1/2 in.) private collection
Well Head with Kufic Inscription
John Singer Sargent. “Well Head with Kufic Inscription”, c. 1879, watercolor over graphite on paper,
32.4 x 24.1 cm (12 3/4 x 9 1/2 in.) framed: 54.5 x 46.2 cm (21 7/16 x 18 3/16 in.) Private Collection
Vaulting
John Singer Sargent. “Vaulting”, Tarragona, Spain, 1908, graphite on o_-white heavy wove paper,
overall: 25.24 x 35.24 cm (9 15/16 x 13 7/8 in.) Harvard Art Museums/Fogg Museum,
Gift of Miss Emily Sargent and Mrs. Francis Ormond in memory of their brother, John Singer Sargent.
Photo © President and Fellows of Harvard College
EXHIBITION CURATORS
Sarah Cash, is an associate curator of American and British paintings at the National Gallery of Art in Washington, DC, where she has worked since 2014. Prior to that she served as curator of American art at the Corcoran Gallery of Art (1998–2014); director of the Maier Museum of Art at Randolph-Macon Woman’s College; and assistant curator at the Amon Carter Museum. She has also held positions at Yale University Art Gallery and the National Portrait Gallery. At the National Gallery, Cash has overseen and assisted with numerous projects involving the transition of the Corcoran’s collections to the National Gallery of Art. She co-curated the exhibition Sargent and Spain (2022), in collaboration Elaine Kilmurray and Richard Ormond, co- directors of the John Singer Sargent catalogue raisonné.
Richard Ormond, co-author of the John Singer Sargent catalogue raisonné, 9 vols., 1998–2016. Currently working on a complete catalogue of Sargent’s 750 portrait drawings in charcoal, and on a selection of his letters. Co-curator of the forthcoming exhibition of Sargent in Spain (2022) at the National Gallery of Art in Washington, DC. He is a great-nephew of the artist. Formerly director of the National Maritime Museum, Greenwich, London, 1986–2000, and chairman of the Watts Gallery, Compton, UK, 1987–2019.
Also curator: Elaine Kilmurray, leading authorities on the artist and authors of the John Singer Sargent catalogue raisonné.
STATEMENTS
Kaywin Feldman Director of the National Gallery of Art
“Sargent and Spain examines, for the first time, how Sargent engaged with that country, in all its diversity, and depicted it in paintings, drawings, and photographs”
Larry Di Rita Bank of America President, Greater Washington DC
“Sargent’s influence on American painting is substantial,” “Bank of America is excited to support the exhibition of this vibrant collection of Sargent’s works.”
EXHIBITION ORGANIZATION
The exhibition is organized by the National Gallery of Art, Washington, in collaboration with the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco.
SPONSORSHIPS
Bank of America is the national tour sponsor for Sargent and Spain.
This exhibition is also made possible by leadership support of the Buffy and William Cafritz Family Fund. Additional major support is provided through the generosity of the Virginia Cretella Mars Endowment Fund for the International Exchange of Art, the Henry Luce Foundation, and the Director’s Circle of the National Gallery of Art.
The exhibition is supported by an indemnity from the Federal Council on the Arts and the Humanities.
EXHIBITION ORGANIZATION
The exhibition is organized by the National Gallery of Art, Washington, in collaboration with the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco.
Sargent and Spain Exhibition Book
Authors: Sarah Cash, Elaine Kilmurray, and Richard Ormon
With contributions by Javier Barón, Nancy G. Heller, Chloe Sharpe, and Catherine Southwick
Imprint: Yale University Press
Hardcover
9780300266467
256 pages,
230 illustrations
9.5 x 11.5 inches
$55.00
American artist John Singer Sargent (1856–1925) experienced Spain, including the picturesque island of Majorca, as a source of rejuvenation and inspiration. Sargent and Spain features scores of the artist’s dazzling watercolors, oil paintings, and drawings, from landscapes and seascapes to architectural studies, scenes of everyday life, and sympathetic portraits of the Roma and other local people he encountered. Immersing himself in the country’s rich culture, he studied Spanish masters old and new, lavishing particular attention on works by Diego Velázquez in the Prado. He rendered the distinctive architecture of the Alhambra as well as other palaces and churches, and he captured lively scenes of ports and villages. Intrigued by Spanish dance and music, Sargent created dynamic views of flamenco and the famous dancer La Carmencita. A map and an illustrated chronology document the artist’s seven trips to and travels through Spain. This handsome book showcases, for the first time, Sargent’s captivation with Spain and the remarkable works of art now associated with it.
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