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.
Ellen Terry as Lady Macbeth
John Singer Sargent American
Not on view
This dramatic sketch shows Ellen Terry (1847–1928) in the role of Lady Macbeth, sweeping out of her castle to greet Duncan, the Scottish king, thus setting in motion the events that lead to his murder. There is a sinister and barbaric splendor to the scene that captures the spirit of the original production. According to Terry, Sargent liked "the swirl of the dress, and the torches and the women bowing down on either side."
This theatrical scene seems to have been Sargent’s first idea for a large-scale painting of the actor. He ultimately abandoned it in favor of a more conventionally posed portrait of Terry in a neutral setting, shown adjacent.
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