John Singer Sargent, The Legendary Gilded Age Portraitist

From the Portrait of Madame X to Carnation, Lily, Lily, Rose , John Singer Sargent's paintings and illustrations show why he's considered a virtuoso artist.

John Singer Sargent’s artworks are full of life. Thick brush strokes swirl around detailed faces and luminous bodies, suggesting movement that sometimes echoes that of his contemporaries, the Impressionists.

But despite his associations with the highest echelons of European and American society, especially during the Gilded Age , Sargent was also clearly fascinated with the common man. This is a subject that shows up often in his artworks, sometimes clothed and sometimes unclothed.

Though Sargent likely had same-sex love affairs, developed friendships with “outsiders” like Oscar Wilde and pioneering feminist Violet Paget, and