Portraits

In his portraits Whistler did not merely attempt to convey the identity of the sitter, as would normally be expected. In contrast, he controversially named his portraits arrangements in different colours to suggest that their primary purpose was to be visually decorative. He often showed people from unusual angles, from the side, e.g. Arrangement in Grey and Black: Portrait of the Painter’s Mother or from behind, e.g. Symphony in Flesh Colour and Pink: Portrait of Mrs Frances Leyland and Rose et or: La Tulipe, focusing attention on the shape and colour of their costume and surroundings rather than their face. However, at the same time he managed to represent something of the individuality of the person posing. His portraits were about finding the balance between the painting as an arrangement of colour and shape, and as a represention of character.

Whistler painted his models in his studio, placing them against neutral backgrounds. He liked to work in a curtained room, so that there was no glare of harsh light or obvious shadow. The light would be low in tone and even in quality. He often continued working into the night, so that especially in his late black portraits, the sitters began to lose their solidity and merge with the darkness of the background. These portraits have an abstract and spiritual quality.

The models for Whistler’s portraits were often made to pose for uncomfortably long periods of time, e.g. Cicely Alexander, while he prepared the canvas, painted, scraped away and started again.