Venice

John Singer Sargent

ca. 1903 · Watercolor, gouache, and graphite on white wove paper · The American Wing

Between 1898 and 1913 Sargent visited Venice almost every year, attracted by a community of friends and colleagues who gathered there and by the city’s scenic possibilities. In Sargent’s image of Venice at dusk, details are obscured and forms are softened by the fading light, suggested by broadly applied, fluid pigments. Pools of color, accented by curving brushstrokes, evoke the gentle undulation of the murky water of the canal. Contemporary travel accounts often describe the beauty and melancholy of the city at night. One author opines, "Venice viewed by moonlight is, and will always remain, so long as one stone is left standing upon another, a fairy tale woven with glorious color."

Artist

John Singer Sargent

Date

ca. 1903

Medium

Watercolor, gouache, and graphite on white wove paper

Culture

American

Department

The American Wing

Credit line

Gift of Mrs. Francis Ormond, 1950