Sargent and Paris, at The Metropolitan Museum of Art from April 27 through August 3, 2025, presents a sweeping look at this transformative decade. With nearly 100 works on view—from academic drawings to society portraits—the exhibition reveals how Sargent harnessed talent, charm, and social savvy to become one of the most talked-about artists in the city. It is the largest international exhibition of his work in more than 25 years and a major collaboration between The Met and the Musée d’Orsay.
This is the “must see” museum exhibition this summer!
Exhibition Overview
Arrival in the City of Art
In the spring of 1874, a confident 18-year-old John Singer Sargent arrived in Paris, armed with sketchbooks, ambition, and encouragement from his proud father who declared, “Everyone says Paris is the best place.” For Sargent, it wasn’t just the best—it was the place that would launch a remarkable career and shape his legacy.
In the Studio: Foundations of Brilliance
Sargent’s studies under Carolus-Duran, a master of painterly finesse, taught him to prioritize form over detail. This influence is evident in early works like Portrait of Frances Sherborne Ridley Watts (1877), completed while Sargent was still a student at the École des Beaux-Arts. Paintings and sketches from this period showcase his precocious control of brushwork and light.
At the same time, Sargent immersed himself in museums, copying works by Velázquez and others, forming a style that honored classical training but pushed toward modern boldness. These foundational years were marked by artistic discipline and deep absorption in the vibrant cultural life of Paris.
Beyond the Studio: A World of Influence
Paris may have been the center of the art world, but Sargent found just as much inspiration beyond it. He traveled extensively—to Brittany, Capri, Venice, and Morocco—capturing light-drenched landscapes, atmospheric seascapes, and scenes of everyday life.
His Salon entries, like En route pour la pêche (1878) and Dans les Oliviers à Capri (1878), introduced audiences to a fresh, observational eye. They also aligned him with the Impressionists, whose plein air approach Sargent admired. These works reveal his willingness to look outward, to explore the everyday, and to challenge the boundaries of genre painting.
The Lure of the “Exotic” and the Power of Place
In the late 1870s and early 1880s, Sargent’s travels extended further into Spain and North Africa. The works from this period reflect both a fascination with other cultures and a strategic eye toward what international audiences considered intriguing or “exotic.”
Pieces like Fumée d’ambre gris (1880) are filled with mystery and mood, evidence of Sargent’s growing interest in tonal composition and ambiguity. His Venice scenes, full of shadow and reflection, shift away from portraiture and into near-abstraction. These paintings were both experimental and calculated—crafted to make an impression on viewers across Europe.
Portraiture as Theater and Strategy
As Sargent’s reputation grew, so did his social circle—and his commissions. From 1879 to 1882, he painted an extraordinary range of subjects: aristocrats, artists, intellectuals, and performers. The portraits from this period are not merely likenesses but complex documents of status, persona, and aspiration.
One highlight is Portrait of Dr. Pozzi (1881), where the crimson robes and confident stance of the fashionable surgeon blend flamboyance with precision. Another is the trio of Pailleron family portraits, capturing a literary family in different emotional registers. Sargent not only painted his subjects—he staged them.
Madame X and the Making of a Masterpiece
Then came the portrait that changed everything: Madame X. Sargent painted Virginie Amélie Avegno Gautreau, a socialite with a commanding presence, in a daring pose that triggered scandal at the 1884 Paris Salon.
Originally painted with a fallen strap and a ghostly pallor, the portrait was considered inappropriate, too suggestive for the public eye. Criticism focused less on technique than on perceived indecency. Though Sargent later repainted the strap and retitled the work Madame X, the damage to his reputation was swift—and lasting.
Yet in hindsight, the painting signaled a breakthrough. Today, Madame X is celebrated as one of the boldest portraits of the era. The exhibition gathers its preparatory sketches and a rare oil study (Madame Gautreau Drinking a Toast) to tell the full story—artistic, social, and personal—behind this legendary canvas.
Echoes of Paris: Endings and Legacies
In the wake of the Madame X scandal, Sargent left Paris for London in 1885. But he never truly left the city behind. He continued to return, to exhibit, and to stay in touch with his Parisian friends. Works like Claude Monet Painting by the Edge of a Wood (1885) reflect his ongoing stylistic exploration and the encouragement of peers like Monet and Rodin.
In 1892, the French state purchased La Carmencita—a triumphant gesture that solidified his acceptance in the country where he first made his name. “I really do not want to be forgotten in Paris,” Sargent once wrote. This exhibition ensures he will not be.
An Exhibition Rooted in Collaboration and Celebration
Curated by Stephanie L. Herdrich (The Met), Caroline Corbeau-Parsons, and Paul Perrin (Musée d’Orsay), Sargent and Paris reflects the best of international partnership, scholarship, and design. The show benefits from the scholarship of Richard Ormond and Elaine Kilmurray, as well as contributions from exhibition designer Patrick Herron and graphic designer Harrison Carter.
The exhibition is made possible by The Marguerite and Frank A. Cosgrove Jr. Fund, with significant support from Bank of America, The Sam and Janet Salz Trust, GRoW @ Annenberg, and many others. It is also supported by an indemnity from the Federal Council on the Arts and the Humanities.
🖼 Sargent and Paris
📍 The Met Fifth Avenue, Gallery 899
📅 April 27 – August 3, 2025 in New York
✈️ Traveling to Musée d’Orsay: September 22, 2025 – January 11, 2026
🔗 Exhibition Information
📱 Hashtag: #MetSargentandParis
🎨 Also visit: Emily Sargent: Portrait of a Family — opening July 1 in the American Wing, celebrating Sargent’s sister and the artistic life of their family.