1878
ink
paper
From the collection of National Gallery of Art
A Sketch from Billingsgate is a 1878 ink by James McNeill Whistler, a Impressionism work, held at National Gallery of Art.
This sketch shows a busy harbor packed with ships. Tall masts crisscross the sky, and smaller boats float in the water below. The artist used quick, scratchy lines to draw the scene, leaving the paper mostly blank except for dark outlines. The sketch focuses on the docks at Billingsgate, a real London market. The loose, sketchy style suggests the artist worked fast, maybe even on the spot. Want to see more of this artist’s work? Check out Whistler, James McNeill.
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.
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