Nocturne: Palaces

1879/1880

James McNeill Whistler

Associated Names
James McNeill Whistler

Artist, American, 1834 - 1903

The image is of a canal scene. The view is angled slightly above water level, inviting the viewer to look across the canal. The horizon is formed by the convergence of the canal and buildings in the background, above the central horizontal line. The drawing features a sketchy and textured style with soft, blurred lines creating a sense of depth. The building on the left has detailed, blotchy brushstrokes depicting old walls. The canal reflects the structures, with a gondola slightly off-center. The color palette is monochromatic, using shades of brown and sepia.

Media Options

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Artwork overview

  • Medium

    etching and drypoint in brownish-black ink on Asian laid paper

  • Credit Line

    Rosenwald Collection

  • Accession Number

    1943.3.8534

  • Catalogue Raisonné

    MacDonald 2012, no. 200, state xi/xii

  • Series Title

    Venice, a Series of Twenty-six Etchings

Artwork history & notes

Provenance

Lessing Julius Rosenwald [1891-1971], Philadelphia, (Lugt 1760b); gift to NGA, 1943.  

Associated Names

Exhibition History

1931

  • Etchings, Lithographs, Original Drawings, and Autograph Letters by James A. McNeill Whistler, The Free Library of Philadelphia, 1931.

1933

  • An Exhibition of Prints from the Collection of Lessing J. Rosenwald, Carnegie Institute, Pittsburgh, PA, 1933, no. 195.

1945

  • Prints from the Lessing J. Rosenwald Collection in the National Gallery of Art, Washington, John Herron Art Institute, Indianapolis, IN, 1945, no. 97.

1995

  • Prints by James McNeill Whistler and His Contemporaries, National Gallery of Art, Washington, 1995.

2003

  • "Whistler and His Circle in Venice", The Corcoran Gallery of Art, Washington; The Grolier Club, New York, 2003, no. 50.

2012

  • "Peintre-graveur: Adventures in Graphic Arts in the 19th Century", Machida City Museum of Graphic Arts, Tokyo, Japan, 2012.

Bibliography

1910

  • Kennedy, Edward G. The Etched Work of Whistler. New York: Grolier Club, 1910, no. 202, viii/ix.

2012

  • MacDonald, Margaret F., Grischka Petri, Joanna Meacock.James McNeill Whistler: The Etchings, a catalogue raisonné. University of Glasgow on-line website at http://etchings.arts.gla.ac.uk. University of Glasgow, 2012: no. 200, state xi/xii.

Inscriptions

on tab: butterfly 'imp.'

Watermarks

none

Wikidata ID

Q65021951

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