John Singer Sargent (American, 1856-1925)

Pointy was a mongrel owned by John Singer Sargent's close friend Louise Burckhardt. Edward and Elizabeth Burckhardt, and their two daughters, Louise and Valerie, were expatriates living in Paris. Sargent painted each member of the Burckhardt family between 1880-1885, and the present picture was painted from sketches Sargent made during one of his visits. It was a gift from the artist to the family along with a sketch of Louise's sister and a half-length of her father done in 1880. A romance between Sargent and Louise, perhaps initiated by Mrs Burckhardt, developed in the early 1880s and there was talk of an engagement, but prospects of marriage had disappeared by 1883 and Louise married Roger Ackerley, an Englishman, in 1889. Sargent's portrait of Louise from 1882 (Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York) won considerable acclaim at the Paris Salon and added immeasurably to Sargent's reputation.

This painting will be included in a forthcoming volume of the J.S. Sargent catalogue raisonné by Richard Ormond and Elaine Kilmurray, in collaboration with Warren Adelson and Elizabeth Oustinoff.