On loan to The Met The Met accepts temporary loans of art both for short-term exhibitions and for long-term display in its galleries.
Lily Millet
John Singer Sargent American
Not on view
Lily Millet (1855–1932), Boston-born wife of American painter Frank Millet, was at the center of the community of artists and writers at Broadway. Sargent was devoted to the Millets: he inscribed sketches to Lily, painted pictures of their house and garden, and produced portraits of their children. After her husband died in the sinking of the Titanic in 1912, Lily became an interior designer in New York.
Author Henry James, who was also a frequent guest at Broadway, admired this painting several years later in 1902. For James, seeing the work conjured fond memories of his time there, and he wrote of the portrait, "Ancient summers look out at me of its charming eyes and the poetry of past experiences lurks in that exquisite smile."
Due to rights restrictions, this image cannot be enlarged, viewed at full screen, or downloaded.
