The Paintings of James McNeill Whistler

Date

Nocturne en gris et or probably dates from the late 1870s, and was first exhibited in 1883. ¹ It was shown at the Exposition Internationale de Peinture, Galerie George Petit, Paris, 1883 (cat. no. 3) as 'Nocturne en gris et or'.

Images

Subject

Titles

Only one title has been suggested:

• 'Nocturne en gris et or' (1883, Petit). ²
• 'Nocturne en gris et or' (1980, YMSM). ³

Description

When it was shown in Paris in 1883 it was described as:

'simplement brume au crépuscule, où les becs de gaz jettent des lueurs d'or.' ('simply haze at dusk, where the gas nozzles throw their glimmers of gold.') ⁴

The description could apply to several Nocturnes, one possibility being Nocturne: Grey and Gold - Chelsea Snow y174 (although that is a more elaborate composition than the description suggests).

Site

Probably London, UK.

Technique

Technique

Unknown.

Conservation History

Unknown.

Frame

Unknown.

History

Provenance

• Unknown.

Exhibitions

• 1883: Exposition Internationale de Peinture, Galerie George Petit, Paris, 1883 (cat. no. 3) as 'Nocturne en gris et or'.

It was described favourably by an art critic in Paris as: 'Tendre et fin' ('tender and fine') but has not been identified. ⁵

Bibliography

Catalogues Raisonnés

• Young, Andrew McLaren, Margaret F. MacDonald, Robin Spencer, and Hamish Miles, The Paintings of James McNeill Whistler, New Haven and London, 1980 (cat. no. 142) as 'Nocturne en gris et or'.

Authored by Whistler

• None.

Catalogues 1855-1905

• Exposition Internationale de Peinture, Galerie George Petit, Paris, 1883 (cat. no. 3) as 'Nocturne en gris et or'.

Journals 1855-1905

• None.

Monographs

• None.

Books on Whistler

• None.

Books, General

• None.

Catalogues 1906-Present

• None.

Journals 1906-Present

• None.

Websites

• None.

Unpublished

• None.

Other

• None.