Art Institute of Chicago

Arrangement in Grey and Black: Portrait of the Artist's Mother, after Whistler

Thomas Robert Way (English, 1861-1913)

Date

1892

Medium

Lithograph in black on ivory Japanese paper, laid down on off-white wove paper (chine collé)

Culture

England

Department

Prints and Drawings

Institution

Art Institute of Chicago

Together with his father (also named Thomas Way), T. R. Way oversaw the printing of most of Whistler’s lithographs, which often involved the direct participation of Whistler himself. The Ways were champions of lithography and sought to have it recognized as an art form, not just as an affordable means of reproducing images. Unlike etching and mezzotint, both of which are intaglio processes requiring the incision of a metal plate, lithographic printing relies more on chemistry and the basic principle that oil and water repel each other. As this example demonstrates, a lithograph can be characterized by a powdery or chalky surface texture. Whistler, together with Way, frequently used this quality to achieve expressive effects.

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