Sargent, John Singer (1856-1925), was an American painter who did his major work in Europe. He lived much of his adult life in England. Today, his works hang in English and American collections as examples of English painting of the late 1800’s.
Sargent established his reputation as a portrait painter, and is best known for his dashing portrayals of fashionable subjects. Sargent broadly brushed in his subjects’ clothing or accessories, while capturing their personalities with remarkable penetration.
Sargent was born on Jan. 12, 1856, in Florence, Italy, to American parents. He made the first of many trips to the United States in 1876. He studied in Italy and France and his first major exhibition was at the Paris Salon of 1878. Sargent moved to London in 1884 and made England his permanent home although he never became a British subject. During the last dozen years of his life, he virtually gave up portrait painting to paint more personally satisfying subjects, especially landscapes in water colors and oil, and to do murals for commissions. Sargent’s murals may be seen in Boston at the public library and at the Museum of Fine Arts.
Sargent received many awards and honors during his lifetime, but his reputation declined after his death on April 15, 1925. However, since the mid-1950’s interest in his work has revived considerably.
