James McNeill Whistler

Arrangement in Grey and Black — art for art's sake

The American expatriate who insisted painting was about form and color, not storytelling. His Arrangement in Grey and Black (Whistler's Mother) and the Nocturnes — Thames river scenes dissolved into tonal mist — championed art for art's sake and anticipated abstraction. His libel suit against Ruskin was a landmark in the battle for artistic autonomy.

Key works

• Arrangement in Grey and Black No. 11871— 'Whistler's Mother' — but the title insists on form, not sentiment
  Musee d'Orsay, Paris
• Nocturne in Black and Gold1875— Ruskin called it 'flinging a pot of paint in the public's face'
  Detroit Institute of Arts

Connections

External