Sargent’s Great Murals

Perspectives from The Artist's Road

Photo Montage of the South End of the Sargent Gallery

On a recent trip to paint in Boston, we inspired ourselves by revisiting the Boston Public Library to study the grand mural sequence, The Triumph of Religion, by John Singer Sargent, located on the third floor of the McKim building. The gallery is named for Sargent, who spent 29 years traveling the world to collect research materials and working to create this amazing artistic tour de force. The gallery is enormous, measuring 84 feet long, 23 feet wide and 26 feet high, and Sargent created his most imaginative and masterly works for the space. At the time they were unveiled, they created a national sensation.

“It was a complete art installation, embellished with relief elements, sculptural groupings and textured surfaces, set into Sargent’s specified architecture and accompanied by lighting the artist designed.” Harvard Art Museum

The Library was designed by McKim, Mead and White to be “a monument to the aspir…