I Thought I'd Share

I've been a fan of John Sargent since a collection of his works was exhibited at the MFA. On a recent trip to the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum i was reminded by this painting how much i love his work.


I'm not sure why i like Sargent so much. Unlike most people, i don't adore impressionism. Some paintings impress me but i much more prefer the psychological paintings of Rembrandt to the light of Monet's Cathedrals or lilies. Sargent is quite conservative in his paintings. Often he chose to focus on portraits of famous American and European families, not exactly thrilling material. But there is something about the way he captures certain looks and poses that feels extremely modern and more importantly familiar. "Street in Venice" is one of my favorite paintings. A small postcard version of it hangs in my bedroom.


I like everything about this painting: its matter of factness, the intimacy created by the two figures and the enclosing space of the alley, and the muted color scheme with a dash of red.
Just for kicks here's another Sargent painting (The Orchestra Rehearsal At Circue D'Hiver) which i love: