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In a Garden, Corfu
John Singer Sargent American
Not on view
In the autumn of 1909, Sargent spent six weeks on the island of Corfu with his sister Emily, her friend Eliza Wedgwood, and Wilfrid and Jane de Glehn. Jane (1873–1961), elegantly dressed in a white blouse, light blue skirt, and cashmere shawl, is the focal point of the composition. The triangular sweep of the skirt dominates the foreground and gives Sargent the opportunity to explore the effects of light and shade on the rich folds of pale fabric, using green, blue, gray, and mauve with touches of pink and white. The skirt was one that Sargent brought on his sketching trips from London for use in his figurative studies. Two unidentified figures are truncated and pushed to the far right and left edges of the canvas. The deliberate choice of costume and boldly painted sky draw attention to the artifice of the composition.
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