EXPLORING SARGENT’S COMPLEX PORTRAITS OF WOMEN

John Singer Sargent – Madame Gautreau Drinking a Toast, 1883.

On Monday, May 3 from 1 to 3 p.m., The Greenwich Decorative Arts Society will present “Hostesses, Circumnavigators, Watercolorists and Exotic Dancers: How Nineteenth-Century Women”™s Culture made John Singer Sargent,” a lecture by Paul Fisher, professor of American studies at Wellesley College.

Earlier generations of art historians often noticed how complex and remarkable Sargent”™s portraits of women tend to be.  But are these “Sargent”™s women,” or do the women in the portraits actually manifest the momentous changes in women”™s roles during Sargent”™s lifetime?  This talk explores Sargent”™s rich depictions of women and the many ways in which his work actually owes a great debt to 19th-century women”™s culture.

The lectures will be held remotely on Zoom and will be free to members. The fee for nonmembers is $25 payable in advance by mail. For reservations and information, contact  greenwichdecorativearts@gmail.com, @greenwichdecorativearts1 or greenwichdecorativearts.org.