Portrait of a Woman c. 1895 - 1901

Editor: This is John Singer Sargent’s "Portrait of a Woman," housed here at Harvard. The sketchiness of the lines gives it a very light, airy feeling, but what strikes you most about this piece? Curator: The immediate impression arises from the stark tonal contrast—the paper's unyielding white against the subtle gradations of graphite. Notice how Sargent uses hatching to suggest volume, particularly in the turban and the sitter's left shoulder. Editor: Yes, the hatching is very effective. Curator: Indeed. Consider too how the unfinished quality, the visible erasures, invite the viewer into the artist's process. It becomes less about representation, more about the act of seeing and rendering. Editor: That makes me think differently about the work. Thanks. Curator: A pleasure. It is about seeing beyond the surface.