Symphony in Blue and Pink

Object Details

Artist

James McNeill Whistler (1834-1903)

Label

This oil sketch is part of a group of similar works later collectively titled the Six Projects by Charles Lang Freer. It dates from a period when Whistler undertook a self-imposed process of artistic reeducation. By borrowing freely from Japanese prints, classical Greek sculpture, and French eighteenth-century rococo painting, Whistler hoped to liberate his art from the chains of narrative realism. His use of chromatic and musical titles suggests that the decorative interplay of colors, rather than a particular story or moral, is key to the work’s content. Whistler later explained that they were the result of the “profound analysis on which the Japanese produce their extraordinary colour-harmonies,” woven through a composition, he said, like threads in embroidery.

Provenance

From 1903 to 1919

Charles Lang Freer (1854-1919), purchased from the artist in 1903 [1]

From 1920

Freer Gallery of Art, gift of Charles Lang Freer in 1920 [2]

Notes:

[1] See Original Whistler List, Paintings, pg. 9, Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery Archives. Purchased in July 1903.

[2] The original deed of Charles Lang Freer's gift was signed in 1906. The collection was received in 1920 upon the completion of the Freer Gallery.

Collection

Freer Gallery of Art Collection

Exhibition History

Ruffled Feathers: Creating Whistler's Peacock Room (July 13, 2024 to January 21, 2027)

The Lost Symphony: Whistler & the Perfection of Art (January 16 to May 30, 2016)

Freer & Whistler: Points of Contact (February 23, 2008 to January 3, 2016)

Pretty Women: Freer and the Ideal of Feminine Beauty (August 13, 2005 to September 17, 2006)

Art for Art's Sake (July 23, 1997 to January 24, 2008)

Whistler & Japan (May 14, 1995 to January 1, 1996)

American Art - James McNeill Whistler (May 9, 1993 to June 30, 1997)

Arrangement in Yellow and Gold: Paintings by James McNeill Whistler (March 14, 1986 to April 1, 1987)

James McNeill Whistler at the Freer Gallery of Art—Whistler and the Figure (May 11, 1984 to December 16, 1984)

American Painting: To Dream of Fair Women (September 24, 1982 to February 29, 1984)

American Paintings (March 20, 1981 to September 24, 1981)

American Paintings: James McNeill Whistler (November 11, 1976 to March 18, 1981)

American Paintings (April 15, 1975 to December 5, 1975)

Portraits and Figure Painting by James McNeill Whistler (October 2, 1972 to May 2, 1973)

Whistler Paintings (October 15, 1969 to September 25, 1971)

Whistler Paintings (September 8, 1961 to October 15, 1969)

American Paintings (June 9, 1960 to September 8, 1961)

Untitled Exhibition, American Oil Paintings, Gallery 3, 1947 (September 25, 1947 to April 12, 1955)

Untitled Exhibition, Works of Whistler (September 22, 1947 to April 11, 1955)

Untitled Exhibition, Whistler Oil Paintings (February 12, 1944 to May 10, 1945)

American Paintings, J.A.McN. Whistler (May 2, 1923 to February 12, 1944)

Panama-Pacific International Exposition (February 20 to December 4, 1915)

Exposition des Oeuvres de James McNeill Whistler (May 1905)

Oil Paintings, Water Colors, Pastels and Drawings: Memorial Exhibition of the Works of Mr. J. McNeill Whistler (February 23 to March 22, 1904)

Previous custodian or owner

James McNeill Whistler (1834-1903) (C.L. Freer source)

Charles Lang Freer (1854-1919)

Credit Line

Gift of Charles Lang Freer

ca. 1868

Accession Number

F1903.179a-b

Restrictions & Rights

Usage conditions apply

Type

Painting

Medium

Oil on millboard mounted on wood panel

Dimensions

H x W (painting): 46.7 x 61.8 cm (18 3/8 x 24 5/16 in)

Origin

United States

On View

Freer Gallery 11: Ruffled Feathers: Creating Whistler's Peacock Room

Related Online Resources

Google Cultural Institute

See more items in

Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery Collection

Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery

Topic

woman

United States

American Art

Charles Lang Freer collection

Record ID

fsg_F1903.179a-b

Metadata Usage (text)

Usage conditions apply

GUID (Link to Original Record)

http://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ye3ae78e00e-dc6d-4c8f-baa5-f08b39c06407