Sargent Watercolors and Other Amazing Surprises at The Brooklyn Museum

When I heard there was to be an exhibit of watercolors by John Singer Sargent at the Brooklyn museum, I immediately put it on my calendar and made arrangements with a friend to go and see them. I always find Sargent's work inspiring, especially his luscious technique in oil. I wasn't sure whether the watercolors would move me as much as a visit with Madame X or the Wyndham Sisters at the Met.

They did not disappoint.

Somehow, he managed to suffuse the same sensuous approach that he has with oils into his watercolors. His supreme draftsmanship is even more apparent in this medium. I felt inspired. The most important reason to see this exhibition especially if you are a Sargent fan, is to see a large body of his work never before assimilated in one place. The Brooklyn Museum and the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston collaborated on this exhibition.

The exhibition runs through July 28. See the Brooklyn Museum of Art website for more information:  http://www.brooklynmuseum.org/exhibitions/sargent_watercolors/

Here are two of my favorite works:

John Singer Sargent

Bedouins, 1905-6

 Opaque and translucent watercolor

Brooklyn Museum, Special Subscription 09.814

Photo by Denise Laurin-Donatelle

Sargent considered this work to be the keynote of his Bedouin watercolors.

What I like best about this painting is how Sargent captures the intense stare of the Bedouin. Although he is an American Realist, the exotic subject is intoxicating! The detail is refined in the face and the artist contrasts this with blurred, undefined strokes at the bottom. Here Sargent captured the effects of the brilliant midday sun so successfully, we can feel the sun's glare in our own eyes.

John Singer Sargent

The Cashmere Shawl, about 1911

Translucent watercolor and touches of opaque watercolor and wax resist
with graphite underdrawing.

Museum of Fine Arts Boston

The subject of this painting is his adored niece, Rose-Marie Ormond. The movement in this watercolor stands out to me. I imagine her as being lively and fun by the way Sargent has added sparkles of white paint around her. The pattern of the fabric leads us up to her pretty face in a zig-zag that culminates in her bonnet. Very fresh and very alive!

If the Sargents were not a big enough treat, there was another amazing exhibition going on concurrently: Gravity and Grace: Monumental Works by El Anatsui. Dear, Mr. Sargent, please do not feel jealous. Your work is wonderful, and I loved it and was inspired by it, but this...THIS!!!! Covering a huge area of the museum, these abstract/non-representational works hung on the walls and sprawled across the floor in testimony to how inventive artists can be. Using materials that are largely considered garbage...bottle caps, metal can covers,  old newspapers, Anatsui and his assistants spin gorgeous oversized metal "tapestries" and sculptures. The exhibit reminded me of a visit to the Bayeux Tapestry Museum in France. It's a stretch comparing work made with bottle caps and labels from booze to medieval tapestries, however, Anatsui's work is monumental in scale, and illusionistic in its richness.  Standing up close to the work, the intricate detail and workmanship astounds. He has transformed garbage into glittering gold. 

Until I arrived in New York City, I was not interested in making art with repurposed materials. Afterall, I love handmade Japanese paper, gold leaf, and other $$$ materials. My recent experience doing a collaborative exhibition with the Northern Manhattan Artists Alliance introduced me to the concept. Seeing the work of Anatsui, I am sold. For more information, go to: Anatsui

Here are some highlights:

El Anatsui,  Drainpipe, 2010, tin, copper and wire

 

El Anatsui, Detail, Drainpipe

El Anatsui (Ghanaian, b. 1944). Earth’s Skin, 2007. Aluminum and copper wire, 177 x 394 in. (449.6 x 1000.8 cm). Courtesy of Guggenheim Abu Dhabi

I did not get the title for this one. I include it here because the construction
is so graceful and the combination of red, green, gold and silver makes a glittering effect.

.

All photos ©Denise Laurin-Donatelle.