Existing comment:
Musicians and Actors
Sargent's passionate interest in music had a profound impact on his portrait practice. Many sitters recalled that he hummed while working and would sometimes dash to his piano to play a few bars of music. He avidly attended concerts and hosted private performances in his studio. Not surprisingly, the leading composers, singers, and musicians of Sargent's day inspired some of his most intriguing drawings. He offered many of these as gifts in grateful exchange for the pleasure he had received from his subject's music.
Theatrical performers also fascinated and inspired Sargent, and he eagerly sought opportunities to represent actors whose work he admired. In 1903, Ethel Barrymore, known as the "first lady" of American theater, received a letter from Sargent asking, "Would it be possible to give me an hour or maybe two? I would like to do a drawing of you and I would be so honoured to present you with the drawing afterward." Sitting for a portrait is a performance in itself, and Sargent clearly relished opportunities to portray men and women who were consummately skilled in the art of self-presentation. |