ARTS

Sargent and Spain at NGA

BY ARI POST

Evidently, John Singer Sargent (1856-1925), the American expatriate and demigod of paint, had a kind of love affair with Spain. From 1879 to 1912 — nearly the entire span of his professional life — he visited the country seven times, enamored with its dance and music, its architecture, its people and landscapes, its mystery, tradition and spirit. (There was also Velasquez, Goya and El Greco.)

At the National Gallery of Art, “Sargent and Spain” is the first exhibition to reveal the artist’s affinity for Spain and the approach he adopted in depicting the rich life and landscape he encountered there. The country inspired Sargent’s art from the beginning through the end of his career, reminding us of the powerful and lingering influence of travel—a lovely little coda to the (relative) end of a global pandemic defined at its edges by burnout and cabin fever. The exhibition is, of course, much more than that sentiment, but it’s impossible to ignore the familiar shiver of wanderlust as you walk through these galleries. It emanates from Sargent’s paintings — the salty, arid whisper of seawater and olive groves, the sultry darkness of a dance hall, the burble of an old stone fountain, the bleached heat of a rocky beachside. It’s really lovely.

Sargent is best known as one of the most prominent painters of the Gilded Age, frequently lauded as the leading portrait painter of his generation for his evocations of Edwardian-era luxury. Nearly every scrap of paper he touched suggests the man was graced with a kind of divine virtuosity. Pure instinct, precise observation and withering intellect working together at all times to produce masterful, expressive and immersive paintings that feel somehow as if they were painted effortlessly and in a single instant with just a few swipes of a brush. He frequently captured the soul of a person, object, or even an entire architectural heritage, with no more than a handful of perfectly placed marks.

At the core of that is observation. Sargent was very good at looking — at seeing — which makes him the perfect kind of artist to interpret the visual language of a new environment. This is profoundly evident in the first gallery of this exhibition, which displays astonishing copies he made of Velasquez paintings at the Prado in Madrid while on his first trip to Spain when he was still a student.

Throughout the exhibition, there are revealing glimpses of Sargent’s working methods, as well as in-depth studies of particular sites he explored through his work — most notably, the Alhambra. John Singer Sargent, “Spanish Roma Dancer,” c. 1879–1880, oil on canvas, Private collection. QuickSilver Photographers LLC.

John Singer Sargent, “Women at Work,” c. 1912, oil on canvas. Private collection, Seattle, Washington. Image courtesy of A.J. Kollar Fine Paintings, LLC; Seattle, Washington.

A Spanish fountain, a garden vase, studies of windows in Majorca and the Renaissance architecture of the island’s capital, Palma. They’re almost too perfectly rendered. No painter should be able to articulate the play of light and shadow when sunlight reflects from a stone fountain’s water basin back onto itself — let alone do it in watercolor, the most unforgiving medium in the history of art.

Sargent seemed to prefer depicting small sections of buildings rather than showing entire structures. He painted architecture the way he encountered it — a distant doorway through a courtyard, the arc of a loggia that opens into a garden.

A major revelation produced by this exhibition, however, is that Sargent also painted architecture the way one sees it through the lens of a camera. Newly discovered photographs belonging to Sargent — some commercial but others that he may have actually taken himself — depict the same architectural subjects as his paintings. It is unmistakable once you see it that Sargent often painted “snapshot” views of architecture—less panoramic, more fragmented, close up and at unusual angles. In certain instances, it even looks like he may have used these photographs for occasional reference.

All this offers a beguiling deep dive into Sargent’s work on architectural themes, and the newly discovered photography opens a fascinating window into the early but immediate, tectonic influences of the camera on fine art.

But the sensory experience of Spain is the true focus—and joy—of this exhibition. And perhaps no artist captured it as deftly as Sargent. To see his work is to be transported.

“Sargent and Spain,” is now at the National Gallery of Art, through Jan. 2, 2023.

Georgetown Haunts

“Halloween Reigns in Our Town,” The Georgetowner headlined several years ago for a cover story on the town’s love affair with the spooky holiday. Our decorated homes certainly show that. From the stories of the Indian maidens at Three Sisters Island to the dying priest at the bottom of the Exorcist Steps, Georgetown owns Halloween — or does Halloween own Georgetown? Your ghost is as good as ours.

FOR HALLOWEEN, WE SPOKE WITH A REAL-LIFE EXORCIST

BY KATE OCZYPOK

At first glance, Father Vincent Lampert, 59, seems to be a typical neighborhood parish priest. He’s assigned as the pastor of St. Peter and St. Michael the Archangel Catholic Churches in Brookville, Indiana. Ordained on June 1, 1991, he grew up on the west side of Indianapolis, briefly studying political science before transferring to Saint Meinrad Seminary to study for the priesthood. He received his Master of Divinity degree from the Benedictine monks who own and operate the Saint Meinrad Archabbey.

What makes Fr. Lampert unique, however, is that he’s an exorcist.

And he’s been one for the Archdiocese of Indianapolis since 2005. Back then, there were only 12 exorcists in the United States. Today, there are well over 100 working to help expel evil spirits from the possessed, in the name of Christ. “My role as an exorcist is to investigate cases of possible extraordinary activity of the devil and to make the determination if the Rite of Exorcism needs to be called into play,” he said.

Lampert received his exorcism classroom training at the Pontifical North American College in Rome. In practice, he has assisted in over 40 exorcisms with Father Carmine de Filippis, who mentors exorcists in the Diocese of Rome.

While most exorcists remain silent regarding what they do, Lampert has been one of the most outspoken real-life exorcists of the modern era. As an expert on the topic, he has spoken out about differences between exorcisms authorized by local bishops versus fee-based, “private exorcists” who work independently from the church. True exorcisms are conducted by the church and have no monetary costs involved (the church sees exorcisms as a ministry of charity to help anyone in need).

A particularly famous case Fr. Lampert was consulted on involved a house owned by paranormal investigator Zak Bagans of The Travel Channel’s Ghost Adventures. Fr. Michael Maginot, pastor at St. Stephen Martyr Church in Merrillville, Indiana had permission from his Bishop Dale Joseph Melczek to work with Fr. Lampert. Despite multiple prayers and blessings, the house was demolished in 2016. You can read more about that home at Catholicnewsagency.com.

“Demons play on a person’s memory and imagination,” Fr. Lampert said. “They strive to instill fear in all those involved in an exorcism so that the focus will be on them and not on the power of God at work in this particular prayer of the church.”

Fr. Lampert has witnessed what he called “many theatrics of the devil,” like eyes rolled to the back of the head, foaming at the mouth, movements of a serpent, levitation, and countless bodily contortions. “The tricks of the devil do not scare me because I know that the power of God is greater than the power of the devil,” Lampert said.

When Lampert gets called to perform an exorcism, he follows the Seven Steps of the American Protocol for Exorcism, which include: 1. A thorough physical exam by a qualified medical doctor with appropriate specialists consulted as needed. 2. A thorough exam by a qualified clinical psychologist or psychiatrist, identifying all areas of concern (note: the experts offer opinions but it’s ultimately up to the exorcist about final determination if an exorcism should be performed). 3. A life history of the person affected, identifying where the entry point of evil may have originated. 4. Normalize the spiritual and sacramental life of the energumen (which means a person believed to be possessed by the devil or spirit). 5. Inventory of the four extraordinary signs of demonic possession from the Rite of Exorcism. 6. Careful compliance with diocesan legal and canonical processes. 7. Compiling the case and sending a letter to the bishop requesting permission for a major exorcism. The governing spirit rests with the local bishop and he will make the final decision as to whether a major exorcism should be performed.

Dealing with so much evil, Lampert tries to stay balanced. “I don’t think it is a good idea for a priest to do this ministry exclusively,” he said. However, “pastoring two churches and being involved in the lives of my parishioners helps me maintain a positive outlook on life and to be filled with joy.”

In case you’re worried about the devil creeping into your life, Fr. Lampert identified eight ways a person can open a doorway to allow evil in: occult ties, entertainment, curse, dedication to a demon, abuse which creates emotional wounds that may cause a person to seek help from the wrong sources, a life of habitual sin, inviting a demon in and broken relationships.

Given we are The Georgetowner and the movie The Exorcist was shot in our own backyards, I had to ask Father Lampert how accurate the 1973 film was. He called it “fairly accurate,” but said “the main deficiency is that it, like most programs about exorcism, focuses on the devil.”

Fr. Lampert ended our chat saying, “People have a great fascination with the devil because he represents the dark side of the spiritual world — the true focus must always be on the power of God.”