Madame Paul Poirson

1885

John Singer Sargent American, 1856-1925

On View

American, Level 2, West Wing

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Published References

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Catalogue Raisonné

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About the Artwork

Sargent attained international prominence as a fashionable society portraitist. In both formal and informal scenes Sargent captured his wealthy clients' physical and psychological natures, the gentility and sumptuousness of the era, and the impression of a fleeting moment.

In this portrait, the disposition of the elongated figure is natural and straightforward, seen in three-quarter view, with her head turned inquisitively, as though she might have walked immediately into this position and looked at Sargent. The personality of Madame Poirson is suggested by the aloofness of her gaze and the icy blue color of the background.

In 1883 John Singer Sargent rented a studio owned by Paul Poirson. According to family history, this portrait of Poirson’s wife was executed in lieu of rent payment. Sargent’s friendly relationship with the Poirsons made this work more personal than the business action might suggest.

Title Madame Paul Poirson

Artwork Date 1885

Artist John Singer Sargent

Life Dates 1856-1925

Nationality Please note: Definitions for nationality may vary significantly, depending on chronology and world events. Some definitions include: Belonging to a people having a common origin based on a geography and/or descent and/or tradition and/or culture and/or religion and/or language, or sharing membership in a legally defined nation. American

Culture Please note: Cultures may be defined by the language, customs, religious beliefs, social norms, and material traits of a group. ----------

Medium Oil on canvas

Dimensions Unframed: 60 × 34 inches (152.4 × 86.4 cm) Framed: 78 inches × 52 inches × 4 1/4 inches (198.1 × 132.1 × 10.8 cm)

Classification Paintings

Department American Art before 1950

Credit Founders Society Purchase with funds from Mr. and Mrs. Richard A. Manoogian, the Beatrice Rogers Fund, Gibbs-Williams Fund and Ralph Harman Booth Bequest Fund

Accession Number This unique number is assigned to an individual artwork as part of the cataloguing process at the time of entry into the permanent collection. Most frequently, accession numbers begin with the year in which the artwork entered the museum’s holdings. For example, 2008.3 refers to the year of acquisition and notes that it was the 3rd of that year. The DIA has a few additional systems—no longer assigned—that identify specific donors or museum patronage groups. 73.41

Markings

Signed Signed and dated, upper left: John S. Sargent 1885

Provenance

John Singer Sargent;
the sitter, Seymourina Cuthbert Poirson;
her daughter-in-law, Madame Charles Poirson;
until 1972, her son, Gerard Poirson;
until 1973, Newhouse Galleries;
1973-present, purchase by the Detroit Institute of Arts (Detroit, Michigan, USA)

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Exhibition History

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Published References

Le Décor de la Vie sous la 3ème Republique de 1870 a 1900. Exh. cat., Le Palais du Louvre, Pavillion de Maison. Paris, 1933, p. 38, no. 301.

Autour de 1900. Exh. cat., Le Galerie Charpeutier. Paris, 1950, no. 155.

Mount, Charles Merrill. John Singer Sargent: A Biography. New York, 1955, pp. 91, 430.

McKibbin, David. Sargent’s Boston. Boston, 1956, p. 116.

Mount, Charles Merrill. John Singer Sargent: A Biography. London, 1957, pp. 112, 339.

John S. Sargent 1856-1925. Exh. cat., Le Centre Culturel Americain. Paris, 1963, no. 13.

Mount, Charles Merrill. John Singer Sargent: A Biography. New York, 1969, pp. 91, 448.

Ormond, Richard. John Singer Sargent: Paintings, Drawings, Watercolours. London, 1970, p. 33.

Curry, Larry J. “Madame Paul Poirson: An Early Portrait by Sargent.” Bulletin of the DIA 51 (1972): pp. 97-104 (ill.).

Rivard, Nancy J. “American Paintings at the Detroit Institute of Arts.” Antiques 114, no. 10 (Novemeber 1978): pp. 1044-1055 (ill.).

John Singer Sargent and the Edwardian Age. Exh. cat., Lotherton Hall, Leeds Art Galleries. London, 1979, p. 36, no. 18 (pl. 3).

Ratcliff, Carter. John Singer Sargent. New York, 1982, pp. 93-94 (pl. 129).

100 Masterworks from the Detroit Institute of Arts. New York, 1985, pp. 204-205 (ill.).

Olson, Stanley. John Singer Sargent: His Portrait. London, 1986, p. 100.

Henshaw, Julia, ed. The Detroit Institute of Arts: A Visitor’s Guide. Detroit, 1995, p. 78 (ill.).

Ormond, Richard, and Elaine Kilmurray. John Singer Sargent: Complete Paintings. Vol. 1, The Early Portraits. New Haven, 1998, pp. 104, 127 (ill.).

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Catalogue Raisoneé

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Credit Line for Reproduction

John Singer Sargent, Madame Paul Poirson, 1885, oil on canvas. Detroit Institute of Arts, Founders Society Purchase with funds from Mr. and Mrs. Richard A. Manoogian, the Beatrice Rogers Fund, et al., 73.41.