Sargent & Fashion

Do clothes make the woman or man? John Singer Sargent is often considered the greatest portrait painter of his era, described by Auguste Rodin as “The Van Dyck of our times.” Like Van Dyck, Sargent combined elegant fashion and psychological insight. But are these things in conflict?  How should an artist respond to the demands of his client and the expectations of society?

Sargent & Fashion at Tate Britain explores this question in an exhibition that has attracted mixed reviews from critics. Sean Forester will go to the museum on Friday 19 April so he can make up his own mind, and invites Salon art-lovers to join him in the Morpeth Arms afterwards to discuss individual responses to both the paintings of Sargent (as a painter himself, Sean is a fan), as well as how the way they are exhibited may affect and even manipulate our responses to his work. 

At the time of writing there are still tickets for the exhibition available to reserve around the 1.30pm slot in which Sean is booked to visit (and Tate members go free without needing to book). Please email us at litsalon@gmail.com with ‘Sargent’ in the subject line if you would like join him in the gallery (we can arrange a meeting point if we know your plans) and then move on to continue the conversation in the Morpeth Arms’ Snug from around 3.30 pm. There is no charge but you may have to buy your own drink!