Brief Biography-John Singer Sargent was born in Florence. His parents, who came from Philadelphia, travelled Europe extensively, and John picked up drawing while on their journeys. He received his formal tuition in the atelier of the society portraitist Carolus-Duran in Paris. The École des Beaux-Arts admitted him in 1874.
Sargent was to become a leading painter under the influence of his master, whom he assisted with painting ceiling decorations in the Louvre; however, the works of Velázquez influenced him most when he went to Spain in 1868. Paris was his home until 1884, when his painting Madame Gautreau caused outrage, and he left for London, settling in Chelsea. In 1886, Sargent began to visit America and painted decorations in Boston’s Public Library in 1890 and the Museum of Fine Arts in 1916. Throughout his visits, he received numerous portrait commissions. Back in England, the gentry of his time regarded him as the must-have portraitist to portray their status. He was successful in painting society portraits, but he also painted en plein air, and as he grew older, he became tired of portraiture. In 1918, he spent time in France as an official war artist. He died in England in 1925.