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Review: An American Inwards London: Whistler In Addition To The Thames

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An American inward London: Whistler as well as the Thames (16 Oct 2013 - 12 Jan 2014) opens today at the Dulwich Picture Gallery inward South London.  The exhibition is also beingness shown at a later appointment inward 2 prestigious American Art Galleries, namely:
I went to regard it final 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, equally an etcher, James McNeill Whistler has ever been idea of equally the successor to Rembrandt (I looked this upwards as well as came across The Great Painter-Etchers - available to download as well as a expert read!).  He's for sure incredibly impressive as well as this exhibition is a masterclass inward providing resources fabric to report his preparation as well as approach to pic making.

The other aspect I dearest virtually Whistler is the agency he used the masters of ukiyo-e - inward exceptional Hokusai as well as Hiroshige - to influence his paintings - peculiarly their composition.  This is most dramatically demonstrated inward Blue as well as Gold - Old Battersea Bridge (Tate Britain) which has been used equally the motif for the exhibition - as well as tin reach the sack endure seen inward the photograph below.

The introduction to the exhibition yesteryear its 2 Glasgow University based curators Professor Margaret F. MacDonald, who is a the world potency on Whistler, as well as Dr Patricia de Montfort was both really 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 inward the world.
Curators of the exhibition - Dr Patricia Montfort as well as Professor Margaret F McDonald
Standing inward front end of Blue as well as Gold - Old Battersea Bridge
The curators accept been working on the exhibition for about nine years amongst a fighting of a blip for the economical crash. They're also the authors of the accompanying catalogue which is really 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 retrieve I've been less enthusiastic of about catalogues of late).  Readers visiting the exhibition inward London may endure a fighting puzzled yesteryear about of the images - all the same the exhibition changes slightly when it goes to the USA.  There are images which tin reach the sack alone locomote inside the United Kingdom of Great Britain as well as Northern Ireland as well as images which cannot exit the Freer.

Key points virtually the exhibition 

  • it reflects a trunk of piece of work yesteryear an creative individual who lived adjacent to or nigh the Thames as well as drew as well as painted it repeatedly over a menstruum of over forty years (1859-1902)
  • it shows Londoners what the Thames as well as its river traffic looked similar inward the latter one-half of the 19th century - as well as equally 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, inward damage of discipline matter, composition as well as technique.  
  • It includes a considerable sum of data virtually the Thames Set, Nocturnes, diverse methods of printmaking as well as the evolution of artwork associated amongst Battersea Bridge
  • the plant yesteryear Whistler inward the exhibition are a mix of etchings, paintings - inward both crude oil as well as watercolour, drawings inward 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 expanse covered yesteryear Whistler inward drawing as well as ikon the Thames.  
For me the alone thing it lacked an annotated map locating paradigm to location.  However the narratives for each paradigm for sure made upwards for this inward damage of identifying exactly what the paradigm is of as well as where it was located.

So on to a fighting to a greater extent than item virtually the exhibition....


The Thames Set

The kickoff room is dedicated to the Thames Set (which I've written virtually previously - see Whistler Month: The Thames Set, Etching Papers as well as watermarks as well as Whistler Month: Thames Views).  You tin reach the sack also regard the Thames ready online


In 1861, Whistler completed the serial of Sixteen etchings of scenes on the Thames 1871 which has later go known equally the ‘Thames set’.   This was the kickoff 'product' he produced after settling inward London inward 1859.  Fourteen etchings from the serial are on display, including Rotherhithe (1860), an etching closely related to Wapping (1860-64), the innovative crude oil ikon of the same yr which features Whistler’s mistress ‘Jo’, which is also inward the show.
The ready 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 virtually Whistler as well as his production of etchings which tells you lot how to cook an etching as well as this is an paradigm of Whistler's etching tools.]

Prof. McDonald told us that in that location are about 10k impressions of Whistler's etchings inward existence as well as they reach vary inward character because all were paw pulled. The display hither comes from a peculiarly expert ready which belongs to The Lunder Collection, Colby College of Art inward Maine which accept been mounted inward a really Whistlerian type of frame.  They hold off really attractive equally good beingness really expert examples of this set.

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

In add-on to that, he's also truthful to his original grooming inward topographical etching - all the scenes are really accurate.

I confess ane 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 contrary of the stance he was drawing.  The ane below is from the balcony of the Angel Public House inward 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 reach the right stance - as well as here's a link to a photograph of the stance from the same balcony today.  Both accept the dome of St Paul's on both.  Of course of report Whistler's stance 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 adjacent room is devoted to paintings of the Thames.  To endure honest I wasn't as well as so 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 due south to Battersea
Centre) Grey as well as Silver: Old Battersea Reach - this is the stance downward river from Lindsay Row
(right) The Last of Old Westminster - the twain was beingness replaced as well as was covered inward scaffolding
The paintings of the river are complemented by historical photographs hung throughout the exhibition.  These assistance to seat Whistler’s piece of work into the social context of the Chelsea neighbourhood where he lived as well as worked.  They also exhibit parts of the Thames which characteristic inward his paintings.

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

Whistler lived inward Lindsay Row - only to the left of Battersea Bridge
He was ikon the twain from his studio!
If he looked the other agency he could regard Battersea Reach as well as the industrial expanse of Battersea
His paintings of the Thames began to hold off rather dissimilar later on after the advent of a Japanese influence on his painting.

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

The adult woman featured inward both paintings is Joanna Heffernan who was his mistress at the time.  One of the bonuses of the question for this exhibition is that the curators were able to seat the Japanese paradigm which is seen on the fan she holds inward her paw - as well as which is at nowadays seen to the right of the painting.
Wapping and Symphony inward White #2 The Little White Girl
The exhibition includes a room of Nocturnes as well as Lithographs. He started ikon "Moonlights" inward 1871. Whistler's Liverpool patron suggested the term "Nocturnes" as well as that was the get upwards of his paintings of nighttime thereafter
A nocturne is an an organization of line, color as well as shape first.  The pic throughout is a work I effort 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 at nowadays on the stone. There's an immense sum of 'colour' inward this monochrome print. Whistler refused to accept it printed after his wife's decease as well as most impressions including this ane were pulled posthumously yesteryear Frederick Goulding who printed Whistler's Thames Etchings

The Thames (1896) 
Lithograph
The final room is devoted to Battersea Bridge - highlighting the send on of Japonisme
 on his piece of work inward damage of composition culminating inward Nocturne Blue as well as Gold: Old Battersea Bridge - which is the motif for the exhibition.  It's really clear that endless studies as well as drawings of the twain were done earlier he painted it properly.

Drawings, pastels as well as etchings of Battersea Bridge

Links to previous posts virtually Whistler

I've written extensively virtually Whistler on this blog.  In 2007 I did a major "learn all I tin reach the sack virtually 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 inward a website About James McNeill Whistler which contains lots of links to other places you lot tin reach the sack regard artwork yesteryear Whistler. 

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

Details of the exhibition
  • An American inward 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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