Skip to content

January 2015: Lady Helen Vincent, Viscountess d’Abernon

/ Slideshows - Spotlight on the Collection

Lady Helen Vincent, Viscountess of d'Abernon. John Singer Sargent, 1904. Oil on canvas. Museum purchase with funds provided by John Bohorfoush, the 1984 Museum Dinner and Ball, and the Museum Store, 1984.121.
Lady Helen Vincent, Viscountess of d’Abernon. John Singer Sargent, 1904. Oil on canvas. Museum purchase with funds provided by John Bohorfoush, the 1984 Museum Dinner and Ball, and the Museum Store, 1984.121.
Lady Helen Vincent, Viscountess d’Abernon, John Singer Sargent, 1904

Portraits are the result of a negotiation between an artist and a sitter, often over considerations such as clothing, props, and location. However, these practical matters can also reveal information about the subject’s inner self. By looking solely at her dress, modern-day viewers get a glimpse into fascinating life of Lady Helen Vincent, Viscountess d’Abernon (1866-1954) which was full not only of status and beauty but also intellectual pursuits.

Born Helen Venetia Duncombe to the Earl and Countess of Feversham, she grew up at the family estate of Duncombe Park in Helmsley, North Yorkshire, England. She was considered a leading beauty and, after her marriage to Edgar Vincent, became a celebrated socialite and hostess. During her husband’s elevation from knight to viscount and his international career as a banker, politician, and diplomat, she kept and published a diary that chronicled her life and times.

Sargent painted this portrait of Lady Helen in 1904, during her visit to Venice, Italy. He elongated her arms to accentuate her gracefulness. As part of the portrait-making process, correspondence reveals that at the eleventh hour he repainted the color of her dress, changing it from white to black. In so doing, he accentuated her milky-white skin, a signifier of her noble status. The darker dress also lifts the viewer’s eye upwards to her renowned face.

Lady Helen’s deep gaze refers to her reputed intellect. She was a member of “The Souls,” a group of distinguished thinkers such as authors Edith Wharton (1862-1937) and Henry James (1843-1916). When World War I broke out, Lady Helen served on the front line in France as a nurse anesthetist, a post that required a depth of knowledge and skill.

 

JOIN THE CONVERSATION!

Today, the way we dress is still an integral way we convey information about ourselves. What we wear can attract positive or negative attention. Occasionally, media attention focused on the clothing choices of famous or noteworthy people may even detract from their capabilities and accomplishments.

How has fashion impacted your life? Is or was there a trend that made you feel especially confident? How have you judged others based on their clothing?

Check out the following links, and join the conversation below!

“Turkeygate: In Defense of Sasha and Malia,” The New Yorker, December 2, 2014

“Hillary Clinton’s Scrunchie: The Truth,” The Guardian, June 10, 2014