Sketchbook ("Munich. July 1st 1884"): Figure and Animal Studies c. 1884 - 1889

Editor: This is a sketchbook by John Singer Sargent, titled "Munich. July 1st 1884: Figure and Animal Studies." Looking at the cover, it seems quite simple, almost utilitarian. What can you tell us about its significance? Curator: It's funny, isn't it? How the mundane can hold so much. This little book, a humble container, was Sargent's portable world. Imagine him, perhaps sitting in a Bavarian beer garden, rapidly sketching figures and animals! What stories could these pages tell? Do you wonder what kind of images and drawings were hidden inside? Editor: Absolutely! I never thought of it as a "portable world" before. It makes you wonder about the artist's process and the seeds of his later masterpieces. Curator: Exactly! It makes me think about the beauty of simplicity and how even the plainest object can inspire something wonderful.