Gondoliers (recto and verso) 19th-20th century

Curator: This is John Singer Sargent's pencil sketch, "Gondoliers," housed here at the Harvard Art Museums. Editor: It has a hurried, almost anxious quality to it. The lines are so immediate. Curator: Indeed. Sargent’s sketches, often done en plein air, speak to the social and class dynamics inherent in Venetian tourism during his time. We see the gondoliers—working-class men—as subjects, but through the lens of a privileged American artist. Editor: The composition draws the eye right to the gondola, then directs it across the water. The stark, unshaded background really emphasizes the contrast. Curator: Exactly. It reflects a tension between observation and representation, power and the picturesque. How do we reconcile that gaze? Editor: I see now the immediacy of the composition highlights how we are looking at the image. A snapshot of a moment and the many meanings behind it.