Special Exhibitions

The Gilded Age

John Singer Sargent (1856-1925) Elizabeth Winthrop Chanler, 1893 Oil, 49-3/8 x 40-1/2 in. Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Chanler A. Chapman
		February 23 - May 18, 2003 Admission Free In 1873, Mark Twain wrote a popular novel in which he described the Gilded Age as America's "golden road to fortune." This period, more than any other time in America's history, aspired to European ideals of aristocracy and patronage with unprecedented collaborations between wealthy American patrons and artists. This exhibition features 57 paintings and sculptures by artists who brought a new sophistication and elegance into American art from the 1870s through the 1920s. Wealthy industrialists eager to acquire culture began to collect the works of American artists who had achieved international recognition. More about "The Gilded Age" Objects Included in The Gilded Age The Smithsonian American Art Museum Planning a Tour? Public Programs Cleveland Collects American Art of the Gilded Age Buy the Catalogue