Campo dei Frari, Venice

c. 1880

John Singer Sargent

Associated Names
John Singer Sargent

Artist, American, 1856 - 1925

This painting shows a sunlit plaza with low steps leading to water at the bottom of the scene. The horizon is marked by rooftops of buildings, including a large red church on the right with round windows and an arched entrance. A few people stand in front of the church in the distance, indicated with small strokes of paint. Two people are present in the center of the painting, at the top of the steps that lead to the water - one standing and another seated on the steps. We can't see their faces, but they appear to have pale skin and wear dresses with shawls in shades of red, blue, white, and tan. The buildings are mostly in shades of cream and tan, and the sky above is mostly white with some hints of pale blue. The water at the bottom is gray, with some parts reflecting the white and blue of the sky. The brushstrokes are soft and visible, giving the scene a hazy appearance.

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Artwork overview

Artwork history & notes

Provenance

Estate of Henry Schlesinger; Mrs. A. H. Berly; (Christie's, New York, March 3, 1913, lot 33); (Colnaghi and Obach, New York, 1913); (Robinson and Farr, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, 1913); (Macbeth Gallery, New York); Mabel Stevens Smithers, Greenwich, Connecticut, 1925; Corcoran Gallery of Art, Washington, DC, 1952; acquired 2014 by the National Gallery of Art

Associated Names

Exhibition History

1881

  • The Salon, Paris, France, 1881, no. 3413 (or 3414), as "Vue de Venise"

1925

  • [exhibition title unknown], Macbeth Galleries, New York, 1925, no. 18, as "Piazza, Venice"

1983

  • John Singer Sargent: Drawings from the Corcoran Gallery of Art, Corcoran Gallery of Art, Washington, DC; Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service, 1983, p. 54, no. 26, repro

1986

  • John Singer Sargent, Whitney Museum of American Art, New York; Art Institute of Chicago, Illinois, 1986-1987, p. 213, no. 174, repro

1999

  • "Sketch Everything and Keep Your Curiosity Fresh": Sargent Drawings from the Corcoran Gallery of Art, Corcoran Gallery of Art, Washington, DC, 1999, fig. 2, repro

2003

  • Whistler and His Circle in Venice, Corcoran Gallery of Art, Washington, DC, 2003, p. 121, no. 89, repro

2009

  • John Singer Sargent in the Corcoran Collection, Corcoran Gallery of Art, Washington, DC, 2009-2010

2015

  • Focus on the Corcoran: Works on Paper, 1860-1990, National Gallery of Art, Washington, DC, 2015.

Bibliography

1980

  • Adelson, Warren. John Singer Sargent: His Own Work. New York: Coe Kerr Gallery, 1980, p. unknown, as "Venetian Piazza"

1983

  • Simmons, Linda Crocker and with the assistance of Adrianne J. Humphrey, et al. American Drawings, Watercolors, Pastels, and Collages in the Collection of the Corcoran Gallery of Art. Washington, DC: Corcoran Gallery of Art, 1983: p. 105, no. 688.

1991

  • Honour, Hugh, and John Fleming. The Venetian Hours of Henry James, Whistler, and Sargent. London: Walker Books, 1991, p. 102.

Inscriptions

lower right in ink: John S. Sargent

Wikidata ID

Q64584007

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