1893
oil
canvas
From the collection of Art Institute of Chicago
Violet and Silver—The Deep Sea is a 1893 oil by James McNeill Whistler, a American Impressionism work, held at Art Institute of Chicago.
You see a big stretch of ocean under a soft, cloudy sky—mostly blues and grays with a hint of violet. Whistler painted this while sitting in a small boat, so the brushstrokes look loose and quick. The thick paint catches the light like real waves do. It’s not about detail; it’s about the feel of the sea on a warm day. If you like how the paint sits on the canvas, look up *impasto*.
After years of painting seascapes on a significantly smaller scale, James McNeill Whistler returned briefly to a large-format canvas to capture a hot summer day on the water near Brittany, France. The artist likely painted this seascape while boating off the coast as a crewman steadied their vessel. This could account for the unusually broad handling of paint and thick touches of pigment apparent throughout the composition, particularly in the clouds and gently cresting waves. Here, Whistler demonstrated his enduring passion for the myriad relationships of color offered by the ever-changing…
James McNeill Whistler, London and Paris, 1893; sold to John A. Lynch (1853–1938), Chicago, 1894 [inscribed on verso of painting: “Exhibited in salon of the / Champ de Mars. 1894 / & / bought in my Studio, Paris / in October of that year by / John A. Lynch, of Chicago. / J. McNeill Whistler.”]; bequeathed to his wife, Clara Margaret Lynch (1872–1954), Chicago, 1938; Estate of Clara Margaret Lynch, Chicago, 1954; given to the Art Institute of Chicago, 1955.
London, Tate Gallery, James McNeill Whistler , Nov. 12, 1994–Jan. 8, 1995; Paris, Musee d'Orsay, Feb. 6–Apr. 30, 1995, Washington DC, National Gallery of Art, May 29–Aug. 20, 1995.
Read the full account in the museum source.
James Abbott McNeill Whistler was an American painter in oils and watercolor, and printmaker, active during the American Gilded Age and based primarily in the United Kingdom.
See the richer artist page
