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Arrangement in Black and Brown: The Fur Jacket
Arrangement in Black and Brown: The Fur Jacket
Image © Worcester Art Museum, all rights reserved.

Arrangement in Black and Brown: The Fur Jacket

Artist (American, 1834–1903)
Date1877
Mediumoil on canvas
Dimensionscanvas: 193 x 92.6 cm (76 x 36 7/16 in.)

ClassificationsPaintings
Credit LineMuseum Purchase
Object number1910.5
Label TextBorn in Lowell, Massachusetts, Whistler went to Paris in 1855 to study art and lived the rest of his life in Europe. He was initially influenced by the French realist painter Courbet, whom he befriended, and his early development parallels that of the Impressionists. But in 1859 he settled in London, and his later career developed more or less independently of French painting. Instead of the brilliant effects attempted by the Impressionists, Whistler was painting delicate scenes of fog and twilight. This painting is a typical one for Whistler, emphasizing the decorative composition of shapes and colors. He often used terms such as "arrangement" and "harmony" to evoke musical comparisons with visual imagery. In the emphasis upon abstract design and subtle shifts in tone and color, Whistler was influenced by Japanese prints and predicted the movement towards pure abstraction in the twentieth century. Whistler himself always retained a recognizable subject in his pictures: Arrangement in Black and Brown is a portrait of his mistress, Maud Franklin. But the identity of the figure is less important than the elegance of the forms and the subtle use of thin layers of paint. ProvenanceBy 1878, Jane Noseda [1814-about 1894], London, acquired from the artist as security for a loan; 1878-1879(?), Charles Augustus Howell [about 1840-1890], deposited at Henry Graves & Co., London as security for a loan; by 1890, reacquired by the artist; 1892, offered for sale at various venues on the London art market; (1892, Alexander Reid [1854-1928], Glasgow). By 1898, William Burrell [1861-1958], Glasgow; (1909, Obach & Co., London); (1909, William Macbeth [1851-1917], Macbeth Gallery, New York, NY); 1910, purchased by the Worcester Art Museum.
On View
On view
Current Location
  • Exhibition Location  Gallery 209

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