Lot Essay
The present work depicts Benvenuto Cellini’s 1545 bronze sculpture of Perseus with the head of Medusa in the Loggia dei Lanzi of the Piazza della Signoria in Florence, Italy.
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Property from the Private Collection of Bernadette J. Berger
John Singer Sargent (1856-1925)
Perseus
Details
John Singer Sargent (1856-1925)
Perseus
watercolor and pencil on paper
14 ¾ x 10 ½ in. (37.5 x 26.7 cm.)
Executed circa 1902.
Perseus
watercolor and pencil on paper
14 ¾ x 10 ½ in. (37.5 x 26.7 cm.)
Executed circa 1902.
Provenance
Violet Sargent Ormond, 1925.
Reine Pitman, daughter of the above, 1955.
Private collection, by descent.
Christie’s, New York, 23 March 1984, lot 25.
Private collection.
Sotheby’s, New York, 22 May 1996, lot 8.
Acquired by the present owner from the above.
Reine Pitman, daughter of the above, 1955.
Private collection, by descent.
Christie’s, New York, 23 March 1984, lot 25.
Private collection.
Sotheby’s, New York, 22 May 1996, lot 8.
Acquired by the present owner from the above.
Literature
The Royal Academy of Arts, Illustrations of the Sargent Exhibition, Royal Academy 1926, London, 1926, p. 106, illustrated (as The Perseus, Florence).
W.H. Downes, John S. Sargent: His Life and Work, London, 1926, p. 367 (as The Perseus, Florence).
The Sargent Trust: List of Pictures and Drawings in the Possession of Mrs. Ormond as Tenant for Life, London, 1927, p. 6, no. 27 (as Florence. Beuvenito [sic] Cellini’s Perseus. Brown Building on Left).
J. Esten, John Singer Sargent: The Male Nudes, New York, 1999, p. 76, illustrated.
R. Ormond, E. Kilmurray, John Singer Sargent: Figures and Landscapes, 1900-1907, vol. VII, New Haven, Connecticut, 2012, pp. 205, 239, 240, 244, 359, no. 1370, illustrated.
W.H. Downes, John S. Sargent: His Life and Work, London, 1926, p. 367 (as The Perseus, Florence).
The Sargent Trust: List of Pictures and Drawings in the Possession of Mrs. Ormond as Tenant for Life, London, 1927, p. 6, no. 27 (as Florence. Beuvenito [sic] Cellini’s Perseus. Brown Building on Left).
J. Esten, John Singer Sargent: The Male Nudes, New York, 1999, p. 76, illustrated.
R. Ormond, E. Kilmurray, John Singer Sargent: Figures and Landscapes, 1900-1907, vol. VII, New Haven, Connecticut, 2012, pp. 205, 239, 240, 244, 359, no. 1370, illustrated.
Exhibited
(Possibly) London, Carfax & Co., Loan and Exhibition of Water Colours By John S. Sargent, R.A., April 1905, no. 40 (as Perseus of Benvenuto Cellini).
London, The Royal Academy of Arts, Exhibition of Works by the Late John S. Sargent, R.A., January 14-March 13, 1926, no. 159 (The Perseus, Florence).
Birmingham, England, City Museum and Art Gallery, Exhibition of Works by John Singer Sargent, R.A. 1856-1925, September 25-October 18, 1964, no. 63 (as Cellini’s Statue of Perseus, Florence).
Ferrara, Italy, Palazzo dei Diamanti, and elsewhere, Sargent e l’Italia, September 22-January 6, 2002, pp. 246-47, no. 36, illustrated.
Los Angeles, California, Los Angeles County Museum of Art, and elsewhere, Sargent and Italy, February 9-May 11, 2003, p. 110, illustrated.
London, The Royal Academy of Arts, Exhibition of Works by the Late John S. Sargent, R.A., January 14-March 13, 1926, no. 159 (The Perseus, Florence).
Birmingham, England, City Museum and Art Gallery, Exhibition of Works by John Singer Sargent, R.A. 1856-1925, September 25-October 18, 1964, no. 63 (as Cellini’s Statue of Perseus, Florence).
Ferrara, Italy, Palazzo dei Diamanti, and elsewhere, Sargent e l’Italia, September 22-January 6, 2002, pp. 246-47, no. 36, illustrated.
Los Angeles, California, Los Angeles County Museum of Art, and elsewhere, Sargent and Italy, February 9-May 11, 2003, p. 110, illustrated.
Brought to you by
Elizabeth Beaman