When the family was painted by John Singer Sargent, he asked the artist to emphasise the irregularity of Edith's nose.

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But that isn't evident in the glowing exhibition of watercolors by John Singer Sargent (1856-1925) now on view at the Brooklyn Museum.

WSJ: Fluid, Evanescent Images | John Singer Sargent Watercolors | Brooklyn Museum | By Tom L. Freudenheim

This carries through from the early colonial portraits by British artists, which influenced American painters such as John Singleton Copley, all the way through to Europhile John Singer Sargent.

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The upper floors bring together John Singer Sargent's paintings.

ECONOMIST: Art of the Americas

Another Biltmore distinction: Most of the items on exhibit, from portraits by Pierre-Auguste Renoir, James Abbott McNeill Whistler and John Singer Sargent to the crystal, porcelain and Flemish tapestries, are original to the house and the family.

WSJ: Biltmore Estate | King of the Castles | Masterpiece by Julia M. Klein