Sargent and Spain

  • Visual arts
  • Washington, D.C.
  • Sun, Oct 02, 2022 —
    Mon, Jan 02, 2023
Sargent and Spain

“Sargent and Spain” presents 120 oils, watercolors, and drawings rarely exhibited, paintings of the artist’s fascination with Spain. The exhibition also features 28 never-before published photographs from the artist’s travels.

American artist John Singer Sargent’s seven trips to Spain between 1879 and 1912 served as a source of rejuvenation and creativity. Internationally acclaimed as the leading society portraitist of his era, he embraced travel as a source of artistic inspiration, often to escape the pressures of that lofty position.

Celebrated as the leading society portraitist of his era, John Singer Sargent influenced a generation of American painters. His personal captivation with Spain resulted in a remarkable body of work that documents his extensive travels from the north to the south and to the island of Majorca. Over three decades Sargent responded to the country’s rich culture by producing landscapes and marine scenes, pictures of everyday life, and architectural studies, as well as sympathetic portrayals of the locals he encountered.

For the first time, Sargent and Spain presents approximately 120 oils, watercolors, and drawings, many of which are rarely exhibited. Also featured from the artist’s travels are some 28 never-before published photographs, several almost certainly taken by Sargent himself.


Related events

Introduction to the exhibition

  • On Sunday, October 2 at noon.
  • At the NGA East Building Auditorium. RSVP required.

Sarah Cash, associate curator of American and British paintings at the National Gallery of Art, will lead a conversation with Richard Ormond and Elaine Kilmurray, exhibition co-curators and leading authorities on the artist and authors of the John Singer Sargent catalogue raisonné. A signing of the exhibition catalog follows in the East Building Concourse Shop.

Photography and Travel in Sargent’s Spain

  • October 3–December 30.
  • At the National Gallery of Art. Free

Photography and Travel in Sargent’s Spain draws upon photographs and printed matter from Sargent’s contemporary, illustrating another view of Spain at his time. Learn more.

Recent Films from Spain at the National Gallery of Art

  • October 2–December 18.
  • At the National Gallery of Art – East Building. RSVP required.

In collaboration with the Cultural Office of the Embassy of Spain in Washington, D.C., SPAIN arts & culture, and Mujeres de Cine, NGA presents the Washington D.C.- area premiere of 8 recent titles by Spanish, predominantly femme, directors. Programmed in conjunction with the exhibition Sargent and Spain and guest curated by KJ Mohr, this series aims to highlight current practices and approaches to production by Spanish filmmakers interested in fiction, documentary, and the multitude of creative modes in between. Learn more.

Sargent’s El Jaleo: What’s Goya got to do with it?

  • On Tuesday, October 18 at 6:30 pm.
  • At the Former Residence of the Ambassadors of Spain. RSVP required.

In this lecture, Janis Tomlinson shares her expertise about Spanish painter Goya and his relationship to the Spain lover and American painter Sargent. Learn more.

Ignacio Prego in concert at the NGA

  • On Sunday, October 30 at noon.
  • At the NGA West Garden Court. RSVP required.

2022 marks the centennial of the Concurso de Cante Jondo (Cante Jondo Contest), a cultural event that showcases the art and culture of the flamenco world in Andalusia. In honor of the anniversary, Ignacio Prego’s program of Spanish music includes sonatas by the two most important keyboard composers of the Iberian Baroque, Domenico Scarlatti and Antonio Soler. Learn more.

Sargent and Spain: A review by Lola Jiménez Blanco

  • On Wednesday, November 2 at 6:30 pm.
  • At the Former Residence of the Ambassadors of Spain. RSVP required.

Spanish art historian Lola Jiménez-Blanco will go over Sargent’s fascination with Spain, placing him in the so called “Spanish crazed” in the U.S. in the late 1800. Learn more.

Lecture by Justine Bayod Espoz

  • On Sunday, November 13 at 1:30 pm.
  • At the NGA West Building Lecture Hall. Registration TBD.

Lecture by Justine Bayod Espoz, executive director of ToritoArtists.

Sargent and Spain: A Webinar with Simon Edmondson and Eva Salmerón

Artists Simon Edmondson and Eva Salmerón discuss the current art scene, their commonalities with Sargent, and inspiration by Spanish culture. Learn more.

Vault to Screen: Carmen Amaya and Flamenco

  • On December 17 and 18 at 2 pm.
  • At the NGA East Building Auditorium. RSVP required.

Programmed in conjunction with the exhibition Sargent and Spain, two archival film titles celebrate the revolutionary career of Spanish Romani Flamenco dancer and singer Carmen Amaya (1913-1963). Learn more.

Venue

Venue map

National Gallery of Art, Constitution Ave. NW, Washington, D.C., DC 20565

Admission

Free. RSVP required for related events.

More information

NGA

Credits

The exhibition is organized by the National Gallery of Art, Washington, in collaboration with the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco, and sponsored by Bank of America. The cultural programming is presented by the NGA in collaboration with the Cultural Office of the Embassy of Spain in Washington, D.C. This exhibition is also made possible by leadership support of the Buffy and William Cafritz Family Fund. Additional major support is provided through the generosity of the Virginia Cretella Mars Endowment Fund for the International Exchange of Art, the Henry Luce Foundation, and the Director's Circle of the National Gallery of Art. The exhibition is supported by an indemnity from the Federal Council on the Arts and the Humanities. Image: Spanish Roma Dwelling by John Singer Sargent, 1912, oil on canvas, Addison Gallery of American Art, Phillips Academy, Andover, Massachusetts, gift of anonymous donor, 1931.13, Bridgeman Images.

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