John Singer Sargent was somewhat of a rarity, having achieved recognition and success as an artist during his lifetime. He was controversial as an artist- known for realism in a period when experimental forms like impressionism and cubism were in vogue. He was an intriguing person, intensely private, and almost a man without country. But his prodigious body of work is, above all, a stunning record of the time in which he lived.
On February 27, 1942 a three decades old US Navy ship was attacked by Japanese aircraft and sunk. It was a difficult time for the allies, many ships were lost that day. But the sinking of USS Langley represented the end of one of the most consequential ships is the Navy's history.