James McNeill Whistler

Nocturne: Blue and Silver - Chelsea

© Tate, London 2003/2004Date1871
Materials Oil on canvas
Dimensions 50.0 cm x 59.3 cm
Marks Signed with a butterfly at the lower centre and dated “71”
Further information Tate Britain, London. www.tate.org.uk
Andrew McLaren Young, Margaret F. MacDonald, Robin Spencer and Hamish Miles, The Paintings of James McNeill Whistler, New Haven and London, Yale University Press, 1980 (103, plate 106).

Note In this painting of the Thames after dark, Whistler turned the grimy, industrial river into a beautiful dreamland. Notice how the lights and towers of the factories on the far bank create ghostly reflections in the water. Looking at the river, you can see the lines left by Whistler’s brush as he swept his thin, liquid paint over his canvas. The thinness of the paint was intended to add to the sense of poetry and mystery of the scene. Notice how the barge and figure in the foreground are almost transparent. The purples and blues of this Nocturne are particularly beautiful. The signature in the centre of the foreground was inspired by Japanese writing. The flat decorative quality of this painting with its lack of perspective was also influenced by oriental art.