Description:

John Singer Sargent ALS in French: "particular conditions in which I find myself in my quality as a painter of portraits" Great Content Throughout!

A 4pp autograph letter in French signed by American expatriate artist John Singer Sargent (1856-1925) as "John S. Sargent" near the bottom of the last page. May 29, [n.y.] [London, England.] On watermarked bifold stationery with Sargent's London address, "31, Tite Street, / Chelsea, S.W." embossed at the letterhead. Expected wear including flattened transmittal folds and isolated pencil inscriptions from a former collector, else near fine. 4.5" x 7." With select translations from the French into English.

John Singer Sargent was truly international: born in Florence, Italy to American parents, he fluently communicated in four languages (English, French, German, and Italian), studied in Italy and France, traveled extensively around the world, and lived for over four decades in London. In 1886, Sargent moved into James McNeil Whistler's old atelier on Tite Street, in the Chelsea neighborhood of central London just steps away from the Thames River; Sargent would maintain these headquarters until his death. Sargent expanded the studio to include a private residence next door around 1900.

The recipient of Sargent's letter is most likely Armand Dayot (1851-1934), the French art historian and art critic. In the letter, Sargent writes about his long-standing desire to reproduce some of his celebrated portraits of women: "'you find in my work eight portraits of women, or even the half, that I will be happy to see reproduced," and that indeed, he has wished to have had reproduced "for a long time." Sargent acknowledges that a certain onerous procedure must be followed, however, in doing things the right way. Various clearances must be obtained ("to ask the people [sitters] of my portraits for permissions, which are a must"), and he also complains that "the demands of reproduction necessitate lots of correspondence and negotiations'" Sargent describes the "particular conditions in which I find myself in my quality as a painter of portraits."

Sargent concludes his letter by writing, "I hope that you will come to my house on your next trip to London and I will be delighted to help you, to my very best, in your study of English painters." This statement suggests a date of perhaps before 1908, when Dayot published his "La Peinture Anglaise, De Ses Origines ' Nos Jours" ["English Painting, From Its Origins to Our Day."]

Sargent's artistic success was inextricably linked to portrait painting. Sargent painted some of the most wealthy, powerful, and influential people of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, from American socialites like Madame Virginie Gautreau and Mrs. Henry White, to British and Scottish nobility like Lady Curzon and Lady Agnew of Lochnaw. These were the types of sitters, then, of whom he would have had to ask permission in order to reproduce their original portraits. Sargent's early portraits enjoyed both renown and notoriety. His later work was heralded for its sense of intimacy, superb tonal qualities, and interesting perspective. Sargent charged about $5,000 for full-scale oil paintings and $400 for drawings. Overseeing reproductions of these portraits was another way of making the portrait business even more lucrative.

This item comes with a Certificate from John Reznikoff, a premier authenticator for both major 3rd party authentication services, PSA and JSA (James Spence Authentications), as well as numerous auction houses.

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October 18, 2023 11:00 AM EDT
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