……………….Chapter #6……………Sargent, through out his life, painted many male subjects……The three photos to the left were of a model he painted often….It is believed they too had an intimate relationship……He did many male nudes, but as the exhibit pointed out….he rarely showed any of them…..In the entire exhibit there were few of men, and I can only recall one female nude painting.
……………….Chapter #5………….I found it interesting that critics at the time did not consider Sargent an “IMPRESSIONIST” painter…..though I found many of his painting were of this school…..He was a genius at “capturing a moment”, and a mood…..a woman sitting alone at a table with red lamps, a mother and father watching their son blow out birthday candles…..a man lighting a cigarette, as a woman looks on….a gray and over caste day in Venice…..a man sitting in a gondola reading a book……and the serenity of a dining table on a shaded veranda…..to me are all very Impressionistic.
……………..Chapter #4…………..Though Sargent was primarily known for his portraits…..he loved painting out of doors, and the practice of painting outdoors had a name….it was called “en plein air” in French…..which is the practice of creating a painting outdoors, directly from the subject, in natural light…capturing the essence of a scene or subject while immersed in the actual environment…..It gave him a much need break from his studio, and concentrating solely on his single subjects…..Later in his life he did more and more out door paintings and less portraits….He traveled all over the world, and Morocco was very inspiring for him….These are just a few of his “PLEIN AIR” paintings.
………………….Chapter #3……….Sargent appreciated and studied many painters among them Velazquez, Frans Hal, Van Dyck, Carolus-Duran, his teacher, and Gainsborough, but the one painter he spent time with was Claude Monet….The two paintings at the extreme left, Sargent painted of Monet and his wife….Sargent was not considered an impressionist painter, but Monet’s influence can easily be seen here with these two painting….Sargent was considered a “Realist”…….Dr. Pozzi, the Frenchman in the red robe, was the first full length portrait Sargent did of a man….Dr. Pozzi was considered a brilliant gynecologist, and some of the instruments he invented are still used and talked about today…The dramatic red robe was chosen by Sargent, and was to signify blood…..Though Pozzi was married with children, he and his wife were not simpatico….He did have many affairs, and some with his patients….Sara Bernhardt was one of his patients. He had a long affair with the actress, and they remained friends their entire lives….He was nicknamed the “Belle Epoque LOVE DOCTOR”…..He also had an affair with Sargent!……”The Woman with the Red Rose”, and the “Lady in Red” were two of Sargent’s better know portraits…..The color is incredible, and looking at the actual paintings one can only marvel how brilliant they still are……over one hundred years later!
…………………To CELEBRATE my BIRTHDAY on JULY 23rd……I am have a FACEBOOK LIVE SHOW……at 3:00pm EST….MARK THE DATE!……..I will be presenting, with Cathy, many NEW ITEMS….that just arrived this month for my Birthday!…..Many are already posted on my LINEA QVC SITE. There are many items on SALE TODAY!….so if you would like to get a jump on them….go ahead!…..I don’t know if they will still be on sale on the 23rd?……I hope you can join us…..but if you can’t the video of the show will be available on FACEBOOK and here on my BLOG…….Let’s all celebrate together!!!!!