Skip Navigation

Sketchbook

John Singer Sargent

American Art

Regarded as one of the leading portraitists and watercolorists of the Gilded Age, the expatriate John Singer Sargent was also a consummate draftsman. He drew prolifically and precociously from a young age, as evidenced by this sketchbook, which he used while traveling in Germany in 1871–72, at age fifteen. Sargent filled many of the pages with his exercises in copying classical statuary from the famous plaster cast collection of Dresden’s Albertinum museum. The sketches show a variety of approaches, from broad, linear strokes to refined tonal modeling.
MEDIUM Graphite, charcoal, watercolor and white chalk on paper
DATES 1871–1872
DIMENSIONS Sketchbook: 9 3/16 x 11 7/8 x 1/2 in. (23.3 x 30.2 x 1.3 cm) Loose sheet - with watercolor of volcano: 3 5/8 x 4 7/8 in. (9.2 x 12.4 cm)  (show scale)
MARKINGS Bound sticker affixed to inside front cover, upper left: red sticker printed with, "SCHREIB-MAL & ZEICHNEN / MATERIALIEN / ADRIAN BRUGGER / 2. THEATINER STRASSE, 2 / MUNCHEN" Watermark on pages 1, 10, and 16: "DE CANSON FRERES / VIDALON-LES-ANNONAY"
SIGNATURE Signed on page 1, across top in graphite: "John Sargent 1871." and "John Sargent- / [Mu]nich"
INSCRIPTIONS [see Description]
COLLECTIONS American Art
ACCESSION NUMBER 1996.231
CREDIT LINE Gift of Bronson Binger
CATALOGUE DESCRIPTION Sketchbook of 16 extant pages of different colored papers (white, tan, blue-gray) bound between cloth-covered cardboard covers; drawings of various subjects, including Rembrandt portraits, classical statuary, pyramids, various animals (deer, camel and horse with cart), a street scene (theatrical subject?) and architectural details; one loose sheet with watercolor painting of volcano tucked inside back cover. All drawings in graphite unless otherwise noted. Front cover inscribed in graphite (very faint) "Munich / Dresden / 1871-2" p. 1: sketch of Rembrandt portrait and other schematic faces, signed across top "John Sargent 1871." and "John Sargent- / [Mu]nich" and inscribed below portrait "Rembrandt" p. 2: sketch of Rembrandt portrait (bearded man with cane), inscribed below image "Rembrandt. Munich." p. 3: sketches of heads and child with basket p. 4: sketches of deer p. 5: sketches of deer p. 6: (recto) heads of camel; (verso) landscape with pyramids in watercolor over graphite p. 7: very faint sketches of deer p. 8: sculpture bust of satyr, inscribed lower left "Dresden. [WP.?]" p. 9: street scene with man in ruffled collar serenading couple embracing under stairs in charcoal and white chalk p. 10: study of sculpture bust in charcoal with touches of white chalk; [following page excised] p. 11: rough sketch of horse-drawn cart, horses, & pedestrian with satchel p. 12: landscape sketch of rocky cliff p. 13: sketch of door with plant-covered staircase p. 14: sketch of Venus statue p. 15: (recto) sketch of statues: Hercules type and heads; (verso) sketches of statues: Demeter type, gladiator, hands, and others p. 16: (recto) rough sketch of Venus de Milo; (verso) rough sketches of heads Loose sheet tucked inside back cover: volcano in watercolor, inscribed on verso "Kivéeski" Inside back cover inscribed at lower left "PN[S?]N"; has paper pocket and cloth loop holder for drawing instrument
MUSEUM LOCATION This item is not on view
CAPTION John Singer Sargent (American, born Italy, 1856–1925). Sketchbook, 1871–1872. Graphite, charcoal, watercolor and white chalk on paper, Sketchbook: 9 3/16 x 11 7/8 x 1/2 in. (23.3 x 30.2 x 1.3 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Gift of Bronson Binger, 1996.231 (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 1996.231_p00a_front_cover_PS2.jpg)
IMAGE front, 1996.231_p00a_front_cover_PS2.jpg. Brooklyn Museum photograph, 2011
"CUR" at the beginning of an image file name means that the image was created by a curatorial staff member. These study images may be digital point-and-shoot photographs, when we don\'t yet have high-quality studio photography, or they may be scans of older negatives, slides, or photographic prints, providing historical documentation of the object.
RIGHTS STATEMENT No known copyright restrictions
This work may be in the public domain in the United States. Works created by United States and non-United States nationals published prior to 1923 are in the public domain, subject to the terms of any applicable treaty or agreement. You may download and use Brooklyn Museum images of this work. Please include caption information from this page and credit the Brooklyn Museum. If you need a high resolution file, please fill out our online application form (charges apply). The Museum does not warrant that the use of this work will not infringe on the rights of third parties, such as artists or artists' heirs holding the rights to the work. It is your responsibility to determine and satisfy copyright or other use restrictions before copying, transmitting, or making other use of protected items beyond that allowed by "fair use," as such term is understood under the United States Copyright Act. The Brooklyn Museum makes no representations or warranties with respect to the application or terms of any international agreement governing copyright protection in the United States for works created by foreign nationals. For further information about copyright, we recommend resources at the United States Library of Congress, Cornell University, Copyright and Cultural Institutions: Guidelines for U.S. Libraries, Archives, and Museums, and Copyright Watch. For more information about the Museum's rights project, including how rights types are assigned, please see our blog posts on copyright. If you have any information regarding this work and rights to it, please contact copyright@brooklynmuseum.org.
RECORD COMPLETENESS
Not every record you will find here is complete. More information is available for some works than for others, and some entries have been updated more recently. Records are frequently reviewed and revised, and we welcome any additional information you might have.