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Brand New!! Review: An American Inwards London: Whistler As Well As The Thames

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An American inwards London: Whistler as well as the Thames (16 Oct 2013 - 12 Jan 2014) opens today at the Dulwich Picture Gallery inwards South London.  The exhibition is also beingness shown at a later appointment inwards 2 prestigious American Art Galleries, namely:
I went to catch it terminal calendar week as well as I highly recommend it to all lovers of drawing, etchings, lithographs as well as drawings as well as paintings of the Thames.

As nosotros were reminded on the curators' tour, every bit an etcher, James McNeill Whistler has ever been idea of every bit the successor to Rembrandt (I looked this upward as well as came across The Great Painter-Etchers - available to download as well as a expert read!).  He's for certain incredibly impressive as well as this exhibition is a masterclass inwards providing resources fabric to report his preparation as well as approach to motion-picture demo making.

The other aspect I dear nigh Whistler is the means he used the masters of ukiyo-e - inwards exceptional Hokusai as well as Hiroshige - to influence his paintings - peculiarly their composition.  This is most dramatically demonstrated inwards Blue as well as Gold - Old Battersea Bridge (Tate Britain) which has been used every bit the motif for the exhibition - as well as tin hold out seen inwards the photograph below.

The introduction to the exhibition yesteryear its 2 Glasgow University based curators Professor Margaret F. MacDonald, who is a basis authorisation on Whistler, as well as Dr Patricia de Montfort was both real informative as well as less heavy-going than about I've been to.   Their novel weblog linked to the exhibition is called James McNeill Whistler as well as his Art.  They've also written the catalogue which links to the exhibition.

Glasgow University has a major resources base of operations related to Whistler:
  • The Hunterian Art Gallery, University of Glasgow has the Whistler Online Catalogue of images of his work
  • The James McNeill Whistler Archive  at Glasgow University also comprises the largest unmarried repository of archival material, correspondence as well as papers on the creative individual inwards the world.
Curators of the exhibition - Dr Patricia Montfort as well as Professor Margaret F McDonald
Standing inwards front end of Blue as well as Gold - Old Battersea Bridge
The curators accept been working on the exhibition for about ix years amongst a flake of a blip for the economical crash. They're also the authors of the accompanying catalogue which is real readable as well as does the reader the courtesy of both next the themes of the exhibition as well as providing a catalogue for all the images! (Regular readers volition recollect I've been less enthusiastic of about catalogues of late).  Readers visiting the exhibition inwards London may hold out a flake puzzled yesteryear about of the images - withal the exhibition changes slightly when it goes to the USA.  There are images which tin solely move inside the U.K. as well as images which cannot go out the Freer.

Key points nigh the exhibition 

  • it reflects a torso of go yesteryear an creative individual who lived side yesteryear side to or nigh the Thames as well as drew as well as painted it repeatedly over a catamenia of over twoscore years (1859-1902)
  • it shows Londoners what the Thames as well as its river traffic looked similar inwards the latter one-half of the 19th century - as well as every bit it underwent the changes associated amongst eg the structure of the Embankment as well as the replacement as well as rebuilding of bridges
  • the exhibition enables report of how Whistler developed his approach to art, inwards damage of plain of report matter, composition as well as technique.  
  • It includes a considerable total of data nigh the Thames Set, Nocturnes, diverse methods of printmaking as well as the evolution of artwork associated amongst Battersea Bridge
  • the plant yesteryear Whistler inwards the exhibition are a mix of etchings, paintings - inwards both fossil oil as well as watercolour, drawings inwards charcoal as well as pastel. 
  • the artwork is supplemented yesteryear photographs of the Thames during the era showing images of the locations, bridges, types of boats as well as watermen he was portraying as well as maps of the surface area covered yesteryear Whistler inwards drawing as well as icon the Thames.  
For me the solely thing it lacked an annotated map locating epitome to location.  However the narratives for each epitome for certain made upward for this inwards damage of identifying exactly what the epitome is of as well as where it was located.

So on to a flake to a greater extent than exceptional nigh the exhibition....


The Thames Set

The showtime room is dedicated to the Thames Set (which I've written nigh previously - see Whistler Month: The Thames Set, Etching Papers as well as watermarks as well as Whistler Month: Thames Views).  You tin also catch the Thames laid online


In 1861, Whistler completed the serial of Sixteen etchings of scenes on the Thames 1871 which has afterwards go known every bit the ‘Thames set’.   This was the showtime 'product' he produced after settling inwards London inwards 1859.  Fourteen etchings from the serial are on display, including Rotherhithe (1860), an etching closely related to Wapping (1860-64), the innovative fossil oil icon of the same twelvemonth which features Whistler’s mistress ‘Jo’, which is also inwards the show.
The laid comprises : Thames Warehouses [46], Old Westminster Bridge [47], Limehouse [48],Eagle Wharf [50], Black Lion Wharf [54], The Pool [49], Thames Police [53], W. Jones, Lime-Burner, Thames Street [55], J. Becquet, Sculptor [62], Rotherhithe [70], The Forge [86], Millbank [78], The Little Pool [79], Battersea Dawn (Cadogan Pier) [95], Old Hungerford Bridge [76] and Chelsea Bridge as well as Church [102]. (James McNeill Whistler: The Etchings - Influenza A virus subtype H5N1 Catalogue Raisonné)
[This is a page on the Glasgow University site nigh Whistler as well as his production of etchings which tells yous how to fix an etching as well as this is an epitome of Whistler's etching tools.]

Prof. McDonald told us that at that topographic point are about 10k impressions of Whistler's etchings inwards existence as well as they exercise vary inwards character because all were paw pulled. The display hither comes from a peculiarly expert laid which belongs to The Lunder Collection, Colby College of Art inwards Maine which accept been mounted inwards a real Whistlerian type of frame.  They await real attractive every bit good beingness real expert examples of this set.

Whistler as well as the Thames - Thames Set
If you're non familiar amongst Whistler's go the principal thing to appreciate is that he is the most superb draughtsman.  Over as well as inwards a higher seat his science amongst a line, he also has full ascendency of alternative of plain of report matter, composition, as well as tonal variation.  All inwards all he is an creative individual who teaches yous a lot simply yesteryear looking at his work.  The plant are minor but at that topographic point are first-class reproductions inwards the catalogue for closer report over time.

In add-on to that, he's also truthful to his original preparation inwards topographical etching - all the scenes are real accurate.

I confess 1 of my long term aims is to map all the etchings on to an onetime map of London c. 1860!

The chore is complicated yesteryear etchings beingness the opposite of the persuasion he was drawing.  The 1 below is from the balcony of the Angel Public House inwards Bermondsey - which sits right over the river, as well as which I know good from younger days.  Below is the Whistler etching - flipped horizontally to plough over the right persuasion - as well as here's a link to a photograph of the persuasion from the same balcony today.  Both accept the dome of St Paul's on both.  Of course of report Whistler's persuasion predates Tower Bridge - as well as the Shard etc!

Rotherhithe yesteryear JM Whistler
etching from the Thames Set - reversed to compare amongst scene today

The side yesteryear side room is devoted to paintings of the Thames.  To hold out honest I wasn't as well as then enthralled yesteryear these but I suspect that was the color palette.

Paintings of the Thames
(left) Brown as well as Silver: Old Battersea Bridge - painted from Lindsay Row, looking S to Battersea
Centre) Grey as well as Silver: Old Battersea Reach - this is the persuasion downwards river from Lindsay Row
(right) The Last of Old Westminster - the duad was beingness replaced as well as was covered inwards scaffolding
The paintings of the river are complemented by historical photographs hung throughout the exhibition.  These assist to seat Whistler’s go into the social context of the Chelsea neighbourhood where he lived as well as worked.  They also demo parts of the Thames which characteristic inwards his paintings.

There were also about onetime maps which helped to locate where he lived - inwards Lindsay Row - relative to Battersea Bridge

Whistler lived inwards Lindsay Row - simply to the left of Battersea Bridge
He was icon the duad from his studio!
If he looked the other means he could catch Battersea Reach as well as the industrial surface area of Battersea
His paintings of the Thames began to await rather unlike later on after the advent of a Japanese influence on his painting.

Whistler paintings becoming influenced yesteryear Japanese composition as well as design
In 1 room are 2 real famous paintings involving figures - Wapping as well as Symphony inwards White #2. I've long liked the Wapping icon - non to the lowest degree because I've sat on that balcony of the Angel Public House inwards Bermondsey. Every fourth dimension I await at it I marvel at the traffic on the Thames at that time.

The adult woman featured inwards both paintings is Joanna Heffernan who was his mistress at the time.  One of the bonuses of the query for this exhibition is that the curators were able to seat the Japanese epitome which is seen on the fan she holds inwards her paw - as well as which is directly seen to the right of the painting.
Wapping and Symphony inwards White #2 The Little White Girl
The exhibition includes a room of Nocturnes as well as Lithographs. He started icon "Moonlights" inwards 1871. Whistler's Liverpool patron suggested the term "Nocturnes" as well as that was the advert of his paintings of nighttime thereafter
A nocturne is an an organization of line, color as well as shape first.  The motion-picture demo throughout is a work I endeavour to solve.
Nocturnes as well as Lithographs
On the right is Nocturne Grey as well as Gold: Westminster Bridge
I actually liked the lithographs that he did from the Savoy Hotel a lot.

In exceptional I loved the 1896 lithograph of The Thames drawn straight on the stone. There's an immense total of 'colour' inwards this monochrome print. Whistler refused to accept it printed after his wife's decease as well as most impressions including this 1 were pulled posthumously yesteryear Frederick Goulding who printed Whistler's Thames Etchings

The Thames (1896) 
Lithograph
The terminal room is devoted to Battersea Bridge - highlighting the touching on of Japonisme
 on his go inwards damage of composition culminating inwards Nocturne Blue as well as Gold: Old Battersea Bridge - which is the motif for the exhibition.  It's real clear that endless studies as well as drawings of the duad were done earlier he painted it properly.

Drawings, pastels as well as etchings of Battersea Bridge

Links to previous posts nigh Whistler

I've written extensively nigh Whistler on this blog.  In 2007 I did a major "learn all I tin nigh Whistler" projection as well as documented the results on this weblog - as well as these are the posts I wrote at the time
The projection also resulted inwards a website About James McNeill Whistler which contains lots of links to other places yous tin catch artwork yesteryear Whistler. 

Footnote: The Royal Society of British Artists RBA had its showtime coming together on 22 May 1823 as well as received a royal charter inwards 1887 when Whistler was the President.  This is ironic actually when yous intend nigh it - given Whistler was an American yesteryear birth!

Details of the exhibition
  • An American inwards London: Whistler as well as the Thames Exhibition dates: sixteen Oct 2013 – 12 Jan 2014
  • Tickets Book online at www.dulwichpicturegallery.org.uk Or yesteryear telephone on 020 8299 8732 | Full Price £11 (£10*) | Senior Citizens £9 (£8*) | Unemployed, disabled, students £6 (£5*) | Children as well as Friends Free | Audio-guide: £3

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