The Cleveland Museum of Art
Collection Online as of April 26, 2024
Nocturne
1878
(American, 1834–1903)
Sheet: 17.1 x 26 cm (6 3/4 x 10 1/4 in.)
Bequest of Charles T. Brooks 1941.89
Catalogue raisonné: Way 5
Location: not on view
Description
Whistler was the first to borrow musical terms for the titles of his works of art. In 1872, he defined painting as "the exact correlative of music, as vague, as purely emotional, as released from all functions of representation." Whistler’s use of musical terminology was meant to convey the supremacy of color, line, and form over subject matter in his art. The title Nocturne was suggested by the artist’s patron, Frederick Leyland, an enthusiastic amateur pianist who was especially fond of Chopin, whose nocturnes were regarded as the epitome of Romantic mood music—particularly appropriate for Whistler’s moonlit marine views.- Themes and Variations: Musical Drawings and Prints. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (January 25-May 17, 2015).Nature Sublime: Landscapes from the 19th Century. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (August 15-November 14, 2004).The View from Afar: Whistler and the Japanese Print. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (August 9-October 16, 1988).Nocturnal Impressions. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (February 20-May 12, 1985).Exhibition of the Month: The Artist, The River and the Sea. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (June 2-July 28, 1947).
- {{cite web|title=Nocturne|url=false|author=James McNeill Whistler|year=1878|access-date=26 April 2024|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}
Source URL:
https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1941.89