Basking in Isabella’s Acquired Beauty

BOSTON — I wish I could have been friends with Isabella Stewart Gardner. My Beautiful Mystery Companion and I are standing before a full-length portrait of her, painted in 1888 by John Singer Sargent and now ensconced in the Gothic Room of the museum that bears her name. The painting, which shows considerably less cleavage than the average teenage girl wandering any mall in America, at the time caused quite a scandal ­— prompting Isabella’s husband, Jack, to ask her to refrain from showing it in public. She respected his wishes. The painting remained visible by invitation only until her death...

Read more...