Arab Street Scene 1890

This is John Singer Sargent's "Arab Street Scene", painted with oil on canvas. The loose brushwork suggests a quick study, capturing the essence of a bustling marketplace. Sargent was engaging with a tradition of plein air painting, made possible by the availability of pre-mixed paints in tubes, and portable easels. The immediacy of his technique, evident in the visible brushstrokes and the lack of precise detail, conveys the energy of the scene. He has used the materiality of paint to evoke the light, dust and heat of the Arab street, a stark contrast with the labor involved for the people depicted. The impressionistic approach obscures the labor and social context of the people. Sargent was more interested in the aesthetics than the economic realities of the street life. Considering the materials and the social context encourages us to think about whose stories get told and how. Rather than simply appreciating Sargent's skill, we can ask ourselves what aspects of life he chose to represent, and what he left out.