Miss N. Huxley
1888
John Singer Sargent whipped up this lively portrait of Miss N. Huxley during a seaside getaway in Broadstairs in September 1888. You can almost feel the speed of his hand in the scratchy, energetic lines of her wide-brimmed hat and the soft shading of her face, while her collar remains just a ghostly outline. Sargent was a master of the quick sketch, often capturing friends and family in moments of relaxation rather than stiff formal poses. The handwritten note at the bottom serves as a little time capsule, pinning down exactly when and where this fleeting moment of Victorian leisure was recorded.
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