Study for "Handmaid of the Lord"

1903-1916

John Singer Sargent

Associated Names
John Singer Sargent

Artist, American, 1856 - 1925

The drawing depicts the upper half of a figure with arms raised, possibly in the midst of pulling on or taking off a coat. The figure's head is blurred and shadowy. The coat has substantial volume, shaded folds, and creases indicating a thick texture. One sleeve is prominent while the other is slightly obscured by shadows. The sketching style is loose and gestural, focusing on capturing the flow and form of the fabric. The background is plain.

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

1964

  • The Private World of John Singer Sargent, Corcoran Gallery of Art, Washington, DC; Cleveland Museum of Art, Ohio; Worcester Art Museum, Massachusetts; Munson-Williams-Proctor Institute, Utica, New York, 1964-1965, no. 143

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.

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. 108, no. 715.

  • 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. 73, no. 53.

Inscriptions

lower right edge in graphite by unknown hand: 4.1.3; lower left verso in graphite by unknown hand: S.6.100

Watermarks

Ingres 1863. / CF [crest] / (FRANCE)

Wikidata ID

Q64584058

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