Artwork
Hangman's House, Tours
Hangman's House, Tours is an ink print by the Impressionist artist James McNeill Whistler. It dates from 1888 and is held in the collection of the National Gallery of Art.
About this work
Overview
Hangman's House, Tours is a 1888 print by James McNeill Whistler, created using etching and drypoint techniques on laid paper.
Subject & Meaning
The etching depicts a street scene in Tours, France, featuring a building known as the Hangman's House, indicated by a sign. A lone figure walks by under a dark sky, surrounded by white buildings.
Technique & Style
Whistler's characteristic style is evident in the delicate yet precise rendering of the scene, with crisp and dark linework, and deep blacks that draw the viewer's eye.
Context
Whistler, an American artist living in the UK, created this work while traveling in France, favoring simple scenes with strong shapes and shadows.
Artist & collection
Artist
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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