John Singer Sargent (Florence, 1856 - 1925, London)
Mrs. Gardner at Fenway Court, 1903
Watercolor on paper , 45.1 x 30.5 cm (17 3/4 x 12 in.)
This vertical watercolor painting t is an informal portrait of Mrs. Gardner set in the museum’s courtyard. Mrs. Gardner is wearing a brown, bulky coat with a shawl collar and a brown hat. She stands facing to our left with her head turned slightly toward us. Her light-skinned face is in partial shadow to our left. Faint pencil marks outline her left eye and nose, but her facial features are largely indistinguishable. Mrs. Gardner stands in front of a slender tree trunk with blue-green leaves and pink flowers covering the branches. Behind the tree are two white, round columns with carved capitals. To our right of the columns is a partial view of another tree.
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Philip Hendy. European and American Paintings in the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum (Boston, 1974), pp. 228-29.
Christina Nielsen (ed.). Sargent on Location: Gardner's First Artist-in-Residence. Exh. cat. (Boston: Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, 2018), p. 20, fig. 8.
Object details
Accession number
P1s4
Creators
- John Singer Sargent (Florence, 1856 - 1925, London) - primary
- Isabella Stewart Gardner (New York, 1840 - 1924, Boston) - subject
Full title
Mrs. Gardner at Fenway Court
Creation Date
1903
Provenance
Presumably a gift from John Singer Sargent to Isabella Stewart Gardner in April of 1903 when the artist was staying in the Macknight Room of the museum.
Marks
Inscribed in pencil (verso): J. S. Sargent / Fenway Court / 1903
Dimensions
45.1 x 30.5 cm (17 3/4 x 12 in.)
Display Media
Watercolor on paper
Web Commentary
Isabella Stewart Gardner kept meticulous records of many of her acquisitions. In keeping with this legacy, object information is continually being reviewed, updated, and enriched in order to give greater access to the collection.
Permanent Gallery Location
Yellow Room
Bibliography
Gilbert Wendel Longstreet and Morris Carter. General Catalogue (Boston, 1935), p. 19.Philip Hendy. European and American Paintings in the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum (Boston, 1974), pp. 228-29.
Christina Nielsen (ed.). Sargent on Location: Gardner's First Artist-in-Residence. Exh. cat. (Boston: Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, 2018), p. 20, fig. 8.
Rights and reproductions
The use of images, text, and all other media found on this website is limited. Please review Rights and Reproductions for details.
Yellow Room
Commentary
Isabella Stewart Gardner kept meticulous records of many of her acquisitions. In keeping with this legacy, object information is continually being reviewed, updated, and enriched in order to give greater access to the collection.