James McNeill Whistler (American, 1834–1903)
Study for "Arrangement in Grey and Black, No. 2: Portrait of Thomas Carlyle"
INV-3551
James McNeill Whistler (American, 1834–1903)1872–73
Study for "Arrangement in Grey and Black, No. 2: Portrait of Thomas Carlyle"
James McNeill Whistler (American, 1834–1903) →Modernismpaintingamerican arts
Date
1872–73
Medium
Oil on canvas
Dimensions
28.6 × 21 cm (11 1/4 × 8 1/4 in.)
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Location
Chicago, IL
Credit
Gift of Emily Crane Chadbourne
In 1872, James McNeill Whistler began a large-scale portrait of Scottish historian and philosopher Thomas Carlyle, who lived near the artist in London. Whistler executed several studies, including this one, which strongly resembles the finished painting. Carlyle endured numerous sittings, as Whistler labored over the portrait with particular emphasis on the aesthetics of the sitter’s black coat. Concerned with harmonious arrangements of color and form, the artist was less interested in depicting the details of Carlyle’s face. The composition is strikingly similar to Whistler’s Arrangement in Grey and Black: Portrait of the Artist’s Mother (1871; Musée d’Orsay), also known as Whistler’s Mother.
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