Nocturne: Blue and Silver – Cremorne Lights. James McNeill Whistler. 1872. Oil on canvas, 19 3/4 x 29 1/4 inches (50.2 x 74.3 cm). Collection of Tate Britain, reference no. N03420. Click on image to enlarge it.
Jospeh Pennell explains that "every Nocturne represents a different effect rendered in a different fashion," and that "[t]he painting of the Nocturnes continued for many years, and in many places. But the greater number were painted when he lived at No. 2 Lindsey Row, many from his own windows, while few took him beyond Chelsea and Battersea or Westminster" (166). To this, Pennell adds, "Subject, sentiment, meaning were for him in the night itself — the night in all its loveliness and mystery. There is no doubt that he carried tradition further and made greater advance in the Nocturnes than in any of his paintings" (167). — Jacqueline Banerjee.
Related Material
- Nocturne in Black and Gold: The Falling Rocket
- Nocturne: Blue and Gold — Old Battersea Bridge
- Nocturne: Blue and Silver — Chelsea
Bibliography
Harvard Art Museums. Web. 2 December 2020.
Pennell, Elizabeth Robins and Joseph. Life of James McNeill Whistler. Vol. 1. Philadelphia: Lippincott / London: Heinemann, 1908. Contributed by Whitney Museum of American Art, Frances Mulhall Achilles Library. Web. 2 December 2020.
Created 3 December 2020