Showcasing paintings that have been long dispersed, it focuses on wealthy American women who relocated to Britain and Europe in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. In true ‘quid pro quo’ fashion, these women (whose fathers had money but yearned for social status) were married off to aristocrats, and gained titles. In return, bankrupt and impoverished Dukes and Lords received much needed infusions of cash, most of which went to save their stately - but dilapidated - homes from falling into ruin.
John Singer Sargent (1856–1925) sits at the centre of the exhibition as both artist and social mirror. By the late 19th and early 20th centuries he was the portraitist of choice for transatlantic high society: his brush captured texture, couture and the psychology of public self-presentation with an ease that disguised enormous technical skill.
He could paint sheen of satin and the cool, controlled poise of a sitter in a single composition, but he also had a knack for suggesting the private life behind the public pose — the slight tilt of a chin, the set of a hand — which makes these portraits intriguing beyond their wardrobe and pageant.
The women all gained a nickname - “Dollar Princess”. As mentioned before, this was shorthand for a broader social phenomenon in which rich American heiresses, often daughters of Gilded Age industrialists and financiers, married titled but often cash-poor European aristocrats. It was the ultimate bargain: American money for British rank.
But the reality was more complicated. The heiresses often used their wealth, networks and energies to enact real change — rescuing declining estates, patronising the arts, campaigning for causes (such as women’s rights) and in some cases entering public and political life.
The exhibition at Kenwood House, curated by Wendy Monkhouse, goes beyond the stereotype of ‘greedy social climbers’ by presenting intriguing biographies of the sitters and showing how their lives evolved after they arrived in England.
What I found striking, standing in front of these Sargent portraits, is how both artist and sitter perform an identity that is half American bluntness and half aristocratic restraint. Take Margaret “Daisy” Leiter (later Countess of Suffolk), whose full-length portrait by Sargent is one of Kenwood’s treasures. She is painted with a kind of self-possessed elegance that hints at independence and agency, not just decoration.
And many of the women Sargent painted — from Consuelo Vanderbilt to Nancy Langhorne (later Lady Astor) and lesser-known figures included in the show — had complex public roles. Consuelo’s marriage to the ninth Duke of Marlborough, for instance, helped consolidate political and social alliances; Nancy Astor’s later career as the first woman MP in the House of Commons shows how a woman could move from being the subject of a portrait to a maker of history.
For sure, moving across the Atlantic was both liberating and constraining for these women. The dollar princesses gained social prestige and a platform for influence, but also had to conform to new expectations — managing an estate, fulfilling ceremonial roles, upholding upper class family reputations and usually denying themselves any personal ambition.
The money these women brought was - more often that not - a lifeline for crumbling country houses: their dowries helped rebuild roofs, restore parks and maintain households that were slowly crumbling. And as you might imagine, their stories were very different and some marriages were notably unhappy and fraught.
Still, commissioning a portrait by Sargent was an act of public self-definition; to be immortalised by him confirmed you belonged to a certain cultural and social sphere. His paintings emphasised a woman’s agency — presenting her as not only beautiful but accomplished, thoughtful, or even formidable.
‘Heiresses’ allows visitors to enjoy how Sargent’s confident brushstrokes, dramatic composition,and evocative use of light convey both presence and persona. The small biographies next to the portraits are equally informative - many women performed wartime work, became patrons of the arts and took up roles in civic life. And most were far more than ‘accessories’ to their husbands too - they actually altered the British social and cultural landscape.
But beyond the ‘Cash for Coronets’ theme, Sargent’s portraits are much more than social stereotypes - they are not only three-dimensional, as well as gentle and humane. The diverse range of women he painted - and their individual stories - make this exhibition not just pleasurable but utterly fascinating.
‘Heiress’ is running at Kenwood House in Hampstead until early October and includes around eighteen portraits from private and international museum collections, as well as several charcoal sketches. The exhibition is not free, but well worth the cost, and walking around Kenwood House itself costs nothing. In fact, you can easily combine a visit to this English Heritage home with an invigorating walk on Hampstead Heath, or walk up to Hampstead Village and stop for a cappuccino in our wine bar on Heath Street.
On that note, if you’re coming to London and looking for somewhere to stay, then why not consider La Gaffe Hotel Hampstead? Our comfortable guest accommodation is competitively-priced, we’re family-run and owned ( so you’re assured of a warm and personal welcome) and our rates include VAT and a continental breakfast (complete with our famous cappuccino).
We’re just three minutes walk from Hampstead tube in leafy north London and then it’s a quick trip (around 15 minutes) into the city centre by underground. However, our neighbourhood is so charming, many people never want to leave it…and if you don’t believe us, come and see it for yourself.
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