Art Institute of Chicago

Violet and Silver—The Deep Sea

James McNeill Whistler (American, 1834–1903)

Date

1893

Medium

Oil on canvas

Culture

Brittany

Department

Arts of the Americas

Institution

Art Institute of Chicago

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 sea.

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