Sargent: Watercolors

This volume, illustrated entirely with full-page color plates, is the first book devoted exclusively to Sargent's work in watercolor. Published in cooperation with The Metropolitan Museum of Art and The Brooklyn Museum, the book includes a representative selection from the rich collections of both museums.
The reproductions encompass the wide range of Sargent's interest: the complex forms of Baroque art and architecture in Florence and Rome; the nuances of light on the canals in Venice; the pictorial qualities of the landscapes he encountered during his many travels in Europe; the mystery and drama of the Bedouins (which he studied to lend authenticity to the Boston Library decorations); the somber and desolate nature of war in the pictures painted during World War I. Finally, the brilliance of the color in Sargent's Florida watercolors anticipates Expressionism. These watercolors with their emphasis on the fleeting visual effects of nature, place Sargent as an Anglo-American Impressionist and reveal the debt he owed to his friend Monet.
The text surveys Sargent's entire career as a painter, placing him in his historical context and documenting the major influences on his art, which ranged from Velasquez to Monet to Whistler. The text and captions accompanying each color plate explain the background and development of Sargent's methods in watercolor and will be of particular interest.