Dinner Table at Night

The couple depicted in this painting is Edith and Albert Vickers, two of John Singer Sargent’s devoted patrons. Mrs Vickers gazes languidly at the viewer—presumably the artist, who mostly likely completed this informal portrait during one of his many visits to the couple’s Sussex home. While Mrs Vickers occupies center stage, the figure of Mr Vickers is cropped and placed at the margin of the composition, heightening the sense that he is aloof and distanced from his wife. The other title for this painting is Le Verre de Porto. It represents one of Sargent’s most impressionistic works. The loose, fluid brushwork seen here contrasts stylistically with the academic realism that was taught at the prestigious Paris Salon, where he regularly exhibited.