I mentioned this in another thread but thought I would post it here just in case.
Starting today there is an exhibit of over 60 paintings by John Singer Sargent at the Tate Britain. It will be there through July 7, 2024. I'm very excited about it as I love his work! https://www.tate.org.uk/whats-on/tate-britain/sargent-and-fashion?
Ohhhh...that sounds like a wonderful exhibition!
I am SO disappointed that I will be missing the exhibit. I won't be in London until late August/early September. Bummer :(
OMG, Mardee! You get Lady Agnew from Edinburgh AND Madam X from The Met. Looks like an amazing exhibition. I thought the Met never let her travel. Lady Agnew visited us in Ft Worth at the Kimbell a few years ago. It is a magnificent piece. I’m very envious. Enjoy.
Mary, I'm so sorry the Boston MFA didn't do better advertising while they had the show, where it titled "Fashioned By Sargent!"
Oh no, looks like I will miss it as I am not going to be in London till September :(
Oh Mardee, I also love his works. I have my ticket already for May!!
There is a nice article in the Financial Times about how he was more to fashion than an artist who painted ladies in the fashions of the times.
https://www.ft.com/content/30037e53-d61a-4e0f-8654-06b81c5ced52
I can no longer read (or gift) the article, but perhaps others can.
I missed out on seeing Lady Agnew of Lochnaw in Edinburgh last year. I need figure out how to squeeze this into my schedule.
I'm just so thrilled about seeing so many of his pieces. I have loved his art for years, especially how he painted fabric!
Pam, I know! Come over for a quick weekend and meet me there!
Mary (Mass.), I'm sorry - I hate that when that happens! I was crushed to miss the Vermeer exhibit last year.
Thanks, Lyndash! I'm excited!
MapLady, you and Mary both have the bad luck! So sorry!
Oh CW, way to plan ahead! I guess I'd better get moving and get mine booked!
Mary (roubrat), you and me both. I'm hurting my brain trying to work it in, but work it in, I will. 😊
Thank you so much for this information, Mardee! We will definitely put the Tate on our schedule for June, as he is one of my favorite portraitists (along with George Bellows).
I am jealous- not going until end of August.
Did you read Strapless by Deborah Davis??
Madam X caused quite a scandal!
Faye
Mardee, please come back after your visit and give us a quick review of the exhibit. Especially interested in how crowded it was. I’ll be in London the last week of April and plan to see it then.
Will do, Kathy. Maybe send me a PM if I forget? Thanks!
I just went to this exhibit yesterday, and it is fantastic. I will be going again – lots to see. Too busy at the moment to write a real review (I'll leave that to Mardee!), but the paintings are of course luminous and lovely and engaging, and it is fascinating seeing some of the actual garments – a velvet dress, Ellen Terry's Macbeth costume, etc. – especially as I am also interested in vintage garments. The staging is well done, with the wall painted hunter green behind the Ellen Terry painting, red behind Mrs Charles Inches, etc.
And – similar to our "Instagram age" ! – apparently some women were choosing dresses with a view toward how the dress would come across in a portrait. A quote from the exhibit:
As one French critic noted, "there is now a class who dress after
pictures, and when they buy a gown ask, 'will it paint?' "
oh, about how crowded it was – I went the day after the exhibit opened to the public, on Friday, 23 Feb., at 5pm (I was busy all day sightseeing with a friend on her very first visit to England), and it was not crowded at all. People in every room, but there was always at least one painting in each room I had all to myself. They even let my friend in, without a prebooked ticket (!), as they'd be closing in less than an hour. Not that I recommend this, as you'd want more time (and a guarantee of admission!), but 5–6pm was all the time we had that day!
I asked, and they said it had been very crowded earlier in the day. I took a look at their website just now and it looks like tickets are going fast. (I chose a random day, Saturday 16 March, & several of the time slots are already sold out.) I imagine the Sargent exhibit will become even more popular as word gets out. I became a Tate member specifically so I could go to the exhibit multiple times and not worry about tickets. (I will be in London several times between now and July, and I love Sargent, and had missed the Boston exhibit.) I love love loved it, and it will be a treat for whoever on this forum is able to go. Enjoy!
Laura, it sounds fabulous and I can't wait to see it! I still haven't booked because I'm trying to figure out the timing involved but now I think I'd better get a move on. Thanks so much!
So I was telling my husband about this exhibition earlier today and he said "wait...how many museums are we going to?!" I think the weather will determine if we get to this one or not. 🫤
Mardee! Thanks for this! I need to pull up the website and stare at the calendar and ponder trading out activities, but we will be in London for a couple of days in late June, finishing a RSE Best of England tour, and then again about a week later, for just a couple of days, just as the Sargent exhibit is ending. It may mean going that last weekend of the exhibit, which is bound to be crowded, but the other choice seems to be skipping out on some of the tour activities in favor of the Tate.
I need to do my homework; I'm sure we can make it work. So thanks again; I'm always up for a special art exhibit, especially when we're going to be there anyway! What are the odds?
Mardee – you're very welcome! You will love it.
Mary, ha ha! So does that mean if it rains, he'll visit another museum? 🤣
Jane, that's exactly what I thought -- what are the odds? I never get this lucky. Yay, maybe that's an omen!
Laura, safe travels back!!!
Mardee, thanks for posting this!
Wow, what a great show!!
I can't wait to see it.
I saw Madam X at The Met years ago but can't wait to see it again, along with everything else.
Amazing the way he painted fabrics......whether it's velvet or satin......the texture is perfect.
Must buy tickets tonight to this show before it sells out.
Rebecca, so glad you'll be able to see it! I just booked my ticket. It was driving me crazy because I was having a hard time fitting it in, and thought I would go after my Greenwich day on Friday, but was afraid to commit to a time in case I didn't get back from Greenwich in time. But then I thought, "Why not go first thing in the morning?".
So that's what I did, and since the 22nd is my birthday, it will be a nice birthday gift to myself. 😊 The ticket is safely tucked away in Apple Wallet now, along with my Tate Modern ticket for the Infinity Mirrors exhibit.
Mardee, thank you – just got back home :-)
I will be back in less than 6 weeks (yikes) and plan to go to the exhibit again*. Glad you got your ticket safely tucked away!
*In my case I have to fit it in around seeing Ian McKellen and "Sam Obisanya" in Player Kings. Looking forward to that, too!
Laura, welcome back! Oh, you're so lucky to see Toheeb Jimoh and Ian McKellen! I'm just sick that I'm going to miss it! I've been a huge fan of Ian McKellen for decades and loved Toheeb Jimoh in Ted Lasso. Such a great cast—I can't wait to hear about it!
Oh, Mardee, I'm so sorry you'll miss Player Kings. I'm also a long-time fan of Ian McKellen. Have you seen "Cold Comfort Farm"? "Seth, drain the well ... there's a neighbour missing!" :-)
I appreciate these posts tremendously. Today I reserved a ticket to see the exhibit in June.
Ohhh, nice story in the NYT from yesterday or the day before. It should show up without a paywall.
Yep, Mardee...if I could come over for a weekend I would!
Laura, no I haven’t but it sounds very interesting! I will check it out.
Elizabeth, I’m so glad you will see it!
Pam, thanks for the link! Loved reading about the Madame X scandal!
Thanks for the link, Pam. I did know the story of "Madame X," but it may well be my least favorite Sargent painting.
We are going to be in London for a couple of days each in June and July, and I'm trying to fit this show into our schedule. We'll get there!
Laura, I just looked up "Cold Comfort Farm" and I have to watch that! Not only does it have Ian, but some of my favorite actors like Rufus Sewell, Rupert Penry-Jones, Joanna Lumley, Eileen Atkins and Stephen Fry. I will definitely be watching that in the next week or so. Thanks for the rec!
Have you (or anyone) seen The Diplomat on Netflix, with Rufus Sewell (playing an American in London)? The rest of the cast is great, too. Keri Russell, Rory Kinnear (I loved him in Penny Dreadful), David Gyasi, Ato Essandoh, and many wonderful others. I've watched it 3 times since it aired last year and will probably watch it again before the 2nd season comes around next year. It has sort of an Aaron Sorkin feeling to it but even better, imo.
SOOOO excited...just booked two tickets for Sunday April 7. Thank you so much for posting info !!
Lynn
Lynn, that's great! You will be in London shortly after me—I leave London on March 24 for SW England. Enjoy the exhibit! I'm excited about seeing it, too!
Mardee, thanks for the recommendation! I have put The Diplomat in my Netflix queue and am excited to watch it. Rufus Sewell as an American?!? the mind boggles ;-)
and yes, Cold Comfort Farm has a dream cast!! and I assume you've seen Stephen Fry in another dream-cast movie, Gosford Park? We never do find out his last name lol.
I saw this at the weekend and it was absolutely fantastic. Some of the works are well known but to see them in real life is a different experience. It was sold out when I was there and not too overcrowded either so they aren’t cramming people in.
Helen, good to know—thanks! I'm glad I booked my ticket already!
The National Gallery is offering an online course featuring Sargent in July. I love their courses- always learn so much!
That sounds great–I will definitely check that out. Thanks, Sara!
Oh, The Diplomat! What a great series! It can only get better with season two. Allison Janney is joining the cast as US VP Grace Penn. We just missed the beginning of the filming in June last year. We were walking down Birdcage walk and all of these trailers were in position- up and down the side of the walk. My son’s curiosity got the best of him and he went to see what they were about. One of the workers told him they were about to start filming. Such a great cast. Can’t wait to see it when it comes out!
Mustlovedogs, I can't wait for season 2! Btw, I just checked and it looks like they are filming there now. They started in June of last year but had to stop because of the union strike, so they started up again in December and it said it's ongoing. That would be cool if I saw them filming something in London when I was there.
Here's a site that shows what and where stuff is being filmed in the UK. https://www.screendaily.com/news/2023-film-and-high-end-tv-productions-shooting-in-the-uk-latest-updates/5178154.article
I'm in London! I've seen ads for this exhibition in the tube stations 🙂
Mary, have a wonderful time! I'll be there in 10 days!
I went today! We got the last 2 tickets for the timeslot and it wasn't crowded. They don't seem to be overselling, so it was comfortable in the exhibition space. Here's me and Lady Agnew getting acquainted
Oh, I'm so glad you got in! I leave in 4 days (but who's counting?)! 🤣
Thanks for that report, Mary! I'm glad to see from your picture that it's not crazy crowded.
Mardee, 4 days, exciting!!
Have a great trip, Mardee!
CWsocial, it was really pleasantly spaced out. I enjoyed it a lot.
Thanks, Mary! Heading out in the day after tomorrow! Save some sticky toffee pudding for me!
I'm leaving tomorrow 😢 Don't forget to enjoy the hot cross buns.
Oh that's right! Thanks for the reminder!
Thank you Mardee!
I sent the link from your post to my daughter and it inspired us to start planning a trip.
I just reserved our tickets for exhibit today.
Hope your visit was wonderful!
Jules, glad you will be able to see it! I absolutely loved it, and as others above have mentioned, there were no crowds at all, so they are keeping the numbers down for the bookings. My visit to London went very well. Right now I'm in Cornwall and will be in England until the end of April. Hope you have a wonderful trip there!
Magnificent exhibit! Thank you very much, Mardee, for posting this alert. I owe you several drinks someday.
I wish someone else had alerted me to the Hopper exhibit that was (and is) ongoing simultaneously at the Tate Modern. Hopper is one of my favorites. (Then again, I have many favorites.) My wife talked me out of going to the Tate Modern because, as she accurately pointed out, I hate most truly modern (post-2000) "fine art." Sometimes I need to not listen to my wife.
My pleasure! And I would always love to meet a fellow forum member for drinks!
But are you sure about the Hopper exhibit? I was curious because I also love Edward Hopper, so I checked and the only thing I could find online was this. But it's from 2004: https://tate.org.uk/whats-on/tate-modern/edward-hopper It's definitely not listed in the current "What's On" at any Tate.
I, too, just checked the Tate Modern because Hopper is a top favorite artist of mine...hoping to visit his house and museum in Nyack, NY some day.
But I will be in London in mid August and plan to visit the Tate Britain for the Now You See Us women artists exhibit--sadly missing John Singer Sargent but one can't be omnipresent! Thank you, Mardee, for mentioning the Tate as I last visited in 2011 and wasn't thinking about it this trip.
Mardee, you're absolutely right. Which leads me to wonder why Tate Modern retains a web page for an event 20 years out of date. (Yes, I misread the date. So sue me! "2004" and "2024" look very similar to an old codger like me, especially after a few pints.)
christa, you're welcome!
And jphbucks, ha ha, no worries! If it's any consolation, I didn't notice it either at first. And I thought the same thing! What a waste of web storage space!
I was able to get in one last visit to the Sargent exhibit last weekend! Still as fabulous, but a lot more people than in February (although I didn't "rock up" – as they say here – shortly before closing this time!).
I was excited to see Nighthawks in Chicago in March. I would have loved to see a whole Hopper exhibition. So funny that they keep the webpage up!! So confusing!
It's quite good being able to go back and refer to old exhibitions sometimes. I have a few old exhibition catalogues that live in my living room bookshelf, for cool points with any visitors :) Tate publishes very good catalogues, many of which can be found on eBay used if it interests you.
I have to chime in here. We are in London on the final full day of a RSE Best of England tour, and 4 of us skipped the Tower of London excursion to visit the Sargent exhibit. I was able to book tickets for today a couple of days ago. I was trying to buy two tickets, but owing to a glitch in the website, as well as my own mistake, I ended up with four. Luckily, a tour mate immediately said “We’ll go!”
What a wonderful exhibit! The paintings were glorious, the commentary apt and instructive. We also had the pleasure of listening to a man who is Sargent’s great nephew talk about the works as he led a small group through the space.
We had a wonderful day. Thank you, Mardee, and all the other Forum Folk who have contributed to this thread.
We’re leaving for a few days tomorrow, but when we return to London next week, I’ll check out the new exhibit, as well,
Jane, I'm glad you got to see it! And how cool to be able to hear Sargent's great nephew talk about him. Hope you're having a wonderful time on your trip!
