Study for "Philosophy"

1922-1925

John Singer Sargent

Associated Names
John Singer Sargent

Artist, American, 1856 - 1925

The image shows a sketch of a seated person. The person is sitting with one leg slightly raised and the other resting on the ground. They have a muscular build and are leaning forward slightly, with their head turned to one side. Their facial features are outlined with minimal detail, suggesting a concentrated or introspective expression. The individual has short hair and is wearing a large cloak or drape that falls around their shoulders and covers parts of their torso and legs, leaving the chest partially visible. The remaining fabric drapes over their knees to the ground. There is no jewelry or other objects visible. The background is plain and unadorned, emphasizing the figure as the focal point.

Media Options

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Artwork overview

Artwork history & notes

Provenance

Miss Emily Sargent and Mrs. Violet Sargent Ormond (sisters of the artist), Surrey, England; National Gallery (now known as the Smithsonian American Art Museum), Washington, DC, 1929, left in storage at the Corcoran Gallery of Art; Corcoran Gallery of Art, Washington, DC, 1949; acquired 2015 by the National Gallery of Art

Associated Names

Exhibition History

1955

  • The Drawings of John Singer Sargent from the Corcoran Gallery of Art, Traveling Exhibition Program, 1955-1970

1999

  • "Sketch Everything and Keep Your Curiosity Fresh": Sargent Drawings from the Corcoran Gallery of Art, Corcoran Gallery of Art, Washington, DC, 1999

Bibliography

1967

  • Gross, Ellen, and James Harithas. Drawings by John Singer Sargent in the Corcoran Gallery of Art. Alhambra, California: Borden, 1967.

1982

  • Ratcliff, Carter. John Singer Sargent. New York: Abbeville Press, 1982, p. 151, pl. 227.

1983

  • Simmons, Linda Crocker and with the assistance of Adrianne J. Humphrey, et al. American Drawings, Watercolors, Pastels, and Collages in the Collection of the Corcoran Gallery of Art. Washington, DC: Corcoran Gallery of Art, 1983: p. 111, no. 735.

  • Nygren, Edward J. John Singer Sargent: Drawings from the Corcoran Gallery of Art. Washington, DC: Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service and the Corcoran Gallery of Art, 1983, p. 88, no. 73.

Inscriptions

lower right in graphite by unknown hand: 12.2.2; upper left verso in graphite by unknown hand: S.5.352; lower right verso in graphite by unknown hand: 12.2.2

Watermarks

L. BERVILLE (FRANCE) / Lalanne

Wikidata ID

Q64584027

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