Finally Meeting 'Dr. Pozzi At Home'
It's Hammer Time...To See One Of My Favorite Paintings
UPDATE
’Dr. Pozzi At Home’ was not on view when I visited the Hammer Museum on Sunday, April 27, 2025. Disappointed, I inquired about the painting and was told it was on view at The Met. Oh really? The Met’s website currently says it’s been “returned to lender” and is “not on view.” There’s a chance it’s now on view at The Huntington, which is very close to my place. Wherever it is, the Hammer teams really needs to get their shit together. It’s not their collection has that many outstanding pieces. Cool space and exhibitions, but the main collection is mostly borrrrrrrring.
Yeah, I said it. BORRRRRRRING! 😎
After years of loving Dr. Pozzi at Home from afar, today I'm heading to the Hammer Museum to meet him in person. Or, at least, to stand face-to-face with John Singer Sargent’s unforgettable portrait of Dr. Samuel-Jean Pozzi, the dashing French gynecologist (and celebrating dandy) rendered in sumptuous, scandalous crimson.
The funny thing—to me at least—is the Hammer Museum has never been one of my favorite LA stops. Despite its world-class collection, in a city packed with iconic museums, the Hammer has always felt a little...forgettable to me. (Sorry, Hammer fans!) But it turns out one of my least favorite museums happens to own one of my favorite portraits.
There’s something magnetic about Sargent’s masterpiece that goes beyond the technical brilliance (which, of course, is insane). It's the sheer presence the good doctor has, lounging in his deep red dressing gown, a perfect blend of elegance, intellect, and sensuality. It’s not just a portrait—it’s an invitation into Pozzi’s private, theatrical world. So much red silk. So many scandalous rumors.
Seeing it reproduced in books and online has always thrilled me, so finally seeing Dr. Pozzi in real life—full-sized and luminous—is something I’ve been looking forward to. Paintings like this breathe when you stand in front of them. They pull you in, slow time down, and for a few minutes, it’s just you and the subject, no matter how many people are crowding the gallery.
I’m making the trek to Westwood with a fellow art-loving friend this afternoon, and it feels like the perfect excuse to make a little pilgrimage together…for art’s sake.
Soon it will be Hammer time. And I’m so ready for it.
Keep calm and make your Sunday a FUN day…
Clint 🌈✌️
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FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION
ON THIS DAY = APRIL 27
BIRTHDAYS
1791 = Samuel Morse = American painter and Morse code co-inventor
1857 = Theodor Kittelsen = Norwegian painter and illustrator
1894 = George Petty = American painter and illustrator
1899 = Walter Lantz = American animator, producer, screenwriter, and actor
1911 = Jack Cole = American dancer, choreographer, and theatre director 🌈
1922 = Jack Klugman = American actor
1927 = Coretta Scott King = African-American activist and author
1932 = Casey Kasem = American disc jockey, radio celebrity, and voice actor
1937 = Sandy Dennis = American actor
1945 = August Wilson = American author and playwright
1947 = Ann Peebles = American singer-songwriter
1948 = Kate Pierson = American singer-songwriter
1951 = Luis Zapata = Mexican writer 🌈
1959 = Sheena Easton = Scottish-American singer-songwriter and actor
1963 = Russell T. Davies = Welsh screenwriter and producer 🌈
1969 = Cory Booker = African-American lawyer and politician
1972 = Nigel Barker = English photographer and author
1978 = Rachel Morrison = American cinematographer and director 🌈
1988 = Lizzo = American singer and rapper
1998 = Froy Gutierrez = American actor and singer 🌈
EVENTS
1667 = Blind and impoverished, John Milton sells Paradise Lost to a printer for £10, so that it could be entered into the Stationers' Register.
1967 = Expo 67 officially opens in Montreal with a large opening ceremony broadcast around the world. It opens to the public the next day.
1967 = The Student Homophile League at Columbia University is founded, making them the first college in the United States to officially recognize a gay student group.
1984 = Twisted Sister releases “We’re Not Going To Take It" as a single.
HOLIDAYS + OBSERVANCES
PORTRAIT + QUOTE OF THE DAY
“I see myself as a very geeky, awkward, shy person and I’m constantly playing these macho boys who are struggling with their relation to masculinity. They’re overcompensating or they’re working very hard to put this masculine idea of themselves out there and that’s something I’ve never really done.”
Froy Gutierrez
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Enjoyed the piece on Sargent and the mention of the Hammer. Now planning to go see while I'm in California for the next couple of months.
A wonderful joint appreciation for you both. I can get overwhelmed by art in large galleries and have to take a break for coffee. Otherwise, I find myself zipping past and cursorily glancing after the first hour or so. Enjoy your visit, dear friend(s).