John Singer Sargent, "Mrs. Asher B. Wertheimer", Oil on canvas, 58 x 37-1/2.
c. New Orleans Museum of Art.

Born in Florence, trained in Paris, headquartered in London and constantly on the road, John Singer Sargent (1856-1925) remained an outsider, a born observer well equipped to act as the premier portraitist during a turbulent era of change at the turn of the 20th century. This exhibition features 12 portraits of Asher Wertheimer and his family that Sargent painted between 1898 and 1908. Wertheimer's establishment as a prominent art dealer on Bond Street in London coincided with Sargent's heyday as a fashionable portraitist capturing a new clientele -- sitters from self-made families who increasingly dominated social, political and economic circles. This exhibition marks the first time these lavish portraits have been shown together in more than 70 years. The national tour of the exhibition is supported by the State of New York; the National Endowment for the Arts, a federal agency; Betty and John Levin; the Morris S. and Florence H. Bender Foundation; and the David Schwartz Foundation. The Virginia presentation is funded by gifts from The Council of the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts and patrons of the museum.

John Singer Sargent, "Ena and Betty, Daughters of Asher and Mrs. Wertheimer", 1877,
Oil on canvas, 73 x 51-1/2.

Seattle Art Museum (Dec.14, 2000-March 18, 2001)