1884, John Singer Sargent, Madame X (Virginie Amelie Avegno Gautreau) (detail) -- Metropolitan Museum of Art (New York)
From the museum label:
Virginie Amélie Avegno Gautreau (1859-1915) was a glamorous figure in Paris in the early 1880s. Born in New Orleans to parents of French descent, she immigrated to Paris as a child and married a French banker in 1879, rising quickly in society. Fascinated by her arresting appearance and intending to create a magnum opus for the Salon, Sargent convinced her to pose for him without a commission. The portrait, shown as Madame ***, was a calculated collaboration between two outsiders who sought recognition in the French capital. Upon completion, Gautreau described it as a "masterpiece."
Sargent conceived the portrait as a bold image of a modern, self-styled celebrity, but viewers saw a controversial Parisienne (or worse, an American interloper) who challenged the manners of French society. The work was met with esteem and scorn. Many critics used Gautreau's appearance to question her morals: They derided her "excessive" use of cosmetics, a symbol of vanity, and her "undress" (Sargent originally painted her dress strap sliding off her right shoulder). Gautreau's mother begged the artist to remove the portrait from the Salon, but he defended his work. Despite the uproar, within days Gautreau was seen in Paris wearing a low-cut dress with a sparkling shoulder strap. When he sold the work to The Met in 1916, Sargent wrote that it was "the best thing I've done," and asked that it be titled Madame X.
1884, John Singer Sargent, Madame X (Virginie Amelie Avegno Gautreau) (detail) -- Metropolitan Museum of Art (New York)
From the museum label:
Virginie Amélie Avegno Gautreau (1859-1915) was a glamorous figure in Paris in the early 1880s. Born in New Orleans to parents of French descent, she immigrated to Paris as a child and married a French banker in 1879, rising quickly in society. Fascinated by her arresting appearance and intending to create a magnum opus for the Salon, Sargent convinced her to pose for him without a commission. The portrait, shown as Madame ***, was a calculated collaboration between two outsiders who sought recognition in the French capital. Upon completion, Gautreau described it as a "masterpiece."
Sargent conceived the portrait as a bold image of a modern, self-styled celebrity, but viewers saw a controversial Parisienne (or worse, an American interloper) who challenged the manners of French society. The work was met with esteem and scorn. Many critics used Gautreau's appearance to question her morals: They derided her "excessive" use of cosmetics, a symbol of vanity, and her "undress" (Sargent originally painted her dress strap sliding off her right shoulder). Gautreau's mother begged the artist to remove the portrait from the Salon, but he defended his work. Despite the uproar, within days Gautreau was seen in Paris wearing a low-cut dress with a sparkling shoulder strap. When he sold the work to The Met in 1916, Sargent wrote that it was "the best thing I've done," and asked that it be titled Madame X.