Sargent was born to wealthy parents, and he moved all his life among the socially fashionable. He studied with Carolus-Duran in Paris (1874-1876). He developed the gift of instantaneous vision and immediate recording as a portraitist. He devoted his later years to impressionistic water colors. Paul Helleau Painting and His Wife John Singer Sargent, 1856-1925, American Brooklyn Museum, New York SuperStock