– John Singer
Sargent (1856–1925) was one of the greatest
portrait artists of his time. While he is best known for
his powerful paintings, he largely ceased painting
portraits in 1907 and turned instead to charcoal
drawings to satisfy portrait commissions. These
drawn portraits represent a substantial, yet often
overlooked, part of his practice, and demonstrate
the same sense of immediacy, psychological insight,
and mastery of chiaroscuro that animate Sargent’s
sitters on canvas. The Morgan Library & Museum is
proud to present the first major exhibition to explore
these expressive portraits in charcoal, John Singer
Sargent: Portraits in Charcoal, on view from October
4, 2019, through January 12, 2020.
Recognizing the sheer scale of Sargent’s achievement as a portrait draftsman, this exhibition
comprises over fifty drawings, including important international loans, from both public and
private collections. The drawings showcase Sargent’s sitters, many of them famous for their
roles in politics, society, and the arts. Sargent’s charcoal portraits are remarkable not only for
their quantity—they number over 750 in total—but also for their vivid portrayal of the men and
women who sat for him. The portraits become telling records of artistic and cultural friendships,
as well as the networks of patronage that underpinned Sargent’s practice as a portrait
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John Singer Sargent, Sybil Sassoon, later Marchioness of
Cholmondeley, 1912. Charcoal. Private Collection.
draftsman in Edwardian Britain and Progressive Era
America. These writers, actors, politicians,
musicians, artists, patrons, and friends shaped not
only Sargent’s life, but also the social and cultural
fabric of the United States and Great Britain in the
early twentieth century.
Important portraits in the exhibition include a
drawing of Sybil Sassoon, a leading light of London
society and a close friend of the artist. Sargent had
known Sassoon since she was a girl, and his
sensitive drawing portrays her on the threshold of
adulthood. Another of Sargent’s sitters and closest
friends included in the exhibition is the author Henry
James. James had championed the young
Sargent’s work, and the two Americans moved in
the same transatlantic intellectual and cultural circles. Sargent also sought out sitters who
interested him and offered to make their portraits, as with his drawing of Ethel Barrymore.
Sargent’s striking charcoal captures the soulful eyes and commanding stage presence for which
the American actress was known.
By the time Sargent switched his portraiture practice almost entirely to charcoal, he had
developed a consistent format for his portrait drawings. Before he set to work, Sargent seemed
to have a clear image in his mind of what he wanted to achieve. He focused on the head and
shoulders of each sitter, depicting them a little less than life-size. After establishing key
proportions and masses, he would develop the drawing in stages, elaborating details at the end.
Often set against a dramatic dark background, these subjects have a powerful presence. Many
sitters recounted the speed and confidence with which Sargent worked; he finished most of
these charcoals in less than three hours. The artist would often invite friends to drawing
sessions to keep the sitters entertained and also to help enliven their features. The finished
charcoal portraits are valuable testaments to Sargent’s prodigious skill as an artist and
draftsman.
John Singer Sargent (1856 - 1925), Henry James
(1843-1916) 1912, Charcoal. Royal Collection Trust / ©
Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II 2019
Sargent had little interest in promoting his career as a portrait draftsman, and these charcoal
drawings were rarely exhibited. While many of the portraits were commissions, a number were
gifts from the artist to his sitters, tokens of Sargent’s admiration and affection for talented
performers and valued friends. The portraits often remained in the private collections of the
sitters and their descendants. This exhibition is the first in recent times to assemble such a wide
selection of Sargent’s drawn portraits, and many of the works have never been publicly
exhibited before.
John Singer Sargent: Portraits in Charcoal was conceived by Richard Ormond, a renowned
Sargent scholar and the artist’s grand-nephew. The exhibition was developed in partnership
between the Morgan Library & Museum and the Smithsonian Institution’s National Portrait
Gallery. The Morgan’s presentation is curated by Laurel Peterson, Moore Curatorial Fellow in
the Department of Drawings and Prints. Following the New York debut, the exhibition will travel
on to Washington, D.C., where it will be on view at the National Portrait Gallery from February
28 through May 31, 2020. The presentation at the National Portrait Gallery will be organized by
Robyn Asleson, Curator of Prints and Drawings.
“John Singer Sargent: Portraits in Charcoal is a long overdue celebration of Sargent’s
achievements as a portrait draftsman,” said Colin B. Bailey, Director of the Morgan Library &
Museum. “Despite numerous exhibitions and scholarly publications recognizing the artist’s oil
portraits, watercolors, landscapes, figure studies, and mural paintings, Sargent’s charcoal
portraits have been largely overlooked in the more than ninety years since his death. Yet they
are valuable testaments to his skill in sensitively capturing the essence of his subjects. We are
delighted to partner with the Smithsonian’s National Portrait Gallery in developing this exhibition
and thank the Jerome L. Greene Foundation and Morgan Stanley for their generous support.”
“It seems particularly appropriate that this enchanting exhibition is taking place at the Morgan
Library,” said Chris McInerney, President and CEO of the Jerome L. Greene Foundation. “John
Singer Sargent was making portraits when Pierpont Morgan was amassing his collection, and
now, a century later, the Library is presenting new ways of appreciating Sargent’s oeuvre. We
are pleased to once again partner with the Morgan Library.”
Accompanying the exhibition is a catalogue published in association with D Giles Limited, which
presents over fifty superb portrait drawings. The catalogue features sitters famous for their roles
in politics, society, and the arts, including W. B. Yeats, Gertrude Vanderbilt Whitney, Winston
Churchill, Ethel Barrymore, and Elizabeth, the Queen Mother. An introduction and catalogue
entries by Richard Ormond explore Sargent’s artistic process and highlight the relationships that
influenced Sargent during a period of rich Anglo-American cultural exchange. The volume also
includes a foreword by Colin B. Bailey, Director of the Morgan Library & Museum, and Kim
Sajet, Director of the National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution.