Composition

Blue and Gold - The Rose Azalea [M.1392] and The Little Blue Cap [M.1393] are closely related in composition and technique.

Technique

Whistler drew the figure first in chalk; he left some areas – such as her lips – unpainted. Originally the turban was higher, and some pale greeny-blue gouache was applied over her head to disguise the alteration. The paint was applied with a small brush, a full brush of paint so thick it tended to granulate. The slightly uneven way that the thick pigments separate adds luminosity to the colour. Whistler may have dropped extra white into the paint to accentuate this, even as it dried. The silvery white gouache of her dress was applied in ribbon-like separate strokes. Many washes of thinner paint were laid over the screen, with soft, silky effect.

See further technical details in Whistler in Watercolour, Freer|Sackler, Washington, 2019, website.

Conservation History

The paper has long fibres, easily disturbed.