Margaret Stuyvesant Rutherfurd White (Mrs. Henry White)

The portrait was commissioned in 1883 by Margaret Stuyvesant Rutherfurd White and her husband Henry White, Paris residents at the time. It was the first portrait commission the artist received from outside his immediate circle, secured after the Whites saw his work at the 1882 Paris Salon, where Mrs. White was particularly struck by his portrait of Charlotte Louise Burckhardt. Sargent began work on the painting in February 1883, immediately after completing The Daughters of Edward Darley Boit, and it became the first work finished in his new studio on the Boulevard Berthier.

After only a few sittings, Mrs. White fell ill and left Paris for an extended convalescence in Cannes. Years later she asked Sargent to modify the tilt of her head in the composition, a revision reflected in the version that entered public collections. The painting remained in the White family by inheritance, passing in 1927 to their son John Campbell White in New York, who gifted it to the Corcoran Gallery of Art in 1949. In 2014 it was acquired by the National Gallery of Art, Washington.

Painted in 1883, the portrait of Margaret Stuyvesant Rutherfurd White occupies a pivotal position in John Singer Sargent's early career as his first commission from outside his personal acquaintance. The Whites selected Sargent after seeing his 1882 Salon entry, and the work was produced around the same period as his portrait of Madame Gautreau (Madame X), which Sargent hoped would secure his breakthrough on the French art market. When the works were exhibited in 1884, the reception diverged sharply: Madame X provoked controversy at the Paris Salon, while Mrs. Henry White drew only tepid reviews at the Royal Academy.

The painting's critical fortunes, however, did not diminish its value to Sargent's career, since the Whites' extensive Anglo-French social connections generated further portrait commissions. The work later entered the Corcoran Gallery of Art in 1949 and is now held by the National Gallery of Art.

John Singer Sargent's oil on canvas portrait depicts Margaret Stuyvesant Rutherfurd White, known as Mrs. Henry White. This formal painting captures her with a notable presence, set against a backdrop of lustrous ivory drapery. The artwork showcases Sargent's skill in rendering the textures of her elaborate attire and accessories, presenting a significant example of early 20th-century portraiture.