When Daffodils At Last At The Fogg Conserved

a composite photo of the before and after condition of a john singer sargent painting of a small glass vase of daffodils and a clementine on a white tablecloth with an antique bench in the shadowy background. the left half is cracked with paint missing along the bottom edge and hazy white over all, the right it clearer, bright colors, and stable paint, after conservation at the harvard art museums
composite image of John Singer Sargent’s Still Life, Daffodils, 1891-94, oil on canvas, 28 x 33 1/2 in,. collection Harvard Art Museums/Fogg Museum

I’m not such a John Singer Sargent superfan that I retreat into his work for solace, but maybe a little for distraction.

In 1937, years after his death, Sargent’s sister gave the Fogg Museum at Harvard a bunch of stuff from his studio, including his palette, some brushes, some tubes of paint, and an unstretched little tabletop still life of daffodils that had spent way too many years rolled up somewhere.

It was in such bad condition it had never been in shown, nor was it likely to ever be, but this year Harvard Art Museums conservation fellow Saffie Patel used a bunch of meticulous and innovative techniques to stabilize the gauzy little painting, and now it’s on view for the first time.

John Singer Sargent’s Still Life, Daffodils, a Conservation Transformation [harvardartmuseums.org]