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John Singer Sargent (1856-1925) was an American expatriate artist, considered the “leading portrait painter of his generation“ for his evocations of Edwardian era luxury. In 1879, at the age of 23, Sargent painted a portrait of teacher Carolus-Duran; the virtuoso effort met with public approval, and announced the direction his mature work would take. Its showing at the Paris Salon was both a tribute to his teacher and an advertisement for portrait commissions. Of Sargent's early work, Henry James wrote that the artist offered “the slightly 'uncanny' spectacle of a talent which on the very threshold of its career has nothing more to learn.“ After leaving Carolus-Duran's atelier, Sargent visited Spain. There he studied the paintings of Velázquez with a passion, absorbing the master's technique, and in his travels gathered ideas for future works. He was entranced with Spanish music and dance. The trip also re-awakened his own tal
