Decorative Design 19th-20th century

Curator: John Singer Sargent, best known for his portraits, also explored decorative design. This study, titled "Decorative Design," resides within the Harvard Art Museums. Editor: My first impression is the quiet tension of precise geometry fighting with the aged, almost fragile quality of the paper. Curator: Sargent's geometric studies evoke Islamic art principles where patterns symbolize the infinite nature of God. Editor: Absolutely. It’s like he's channeling the spiritual through these intricate networks, searching for a universal language in form itself. Curator: And these patterns, echoing through centuries, remind us that art isn't just about the visible but also about the conceptual structures humanity builds. Editor: It’s fascinating to see Sargent, a portraitist of individuals, engage with something so utterly abstract. It reveals a hidden facet of his creative thinking, doesn’t it?