Label Type
Artist BioLabel
Whistler was born in Massachusetts but he spent much of his youth studying abroad in Europe and Russia; once he moved to France in 1855 to study, he never returned to America. While Whistler is best known today for his paintings and his involvement in the Aestheticism movement in Europe, and his coinage of the phrase “art for art’s sake,” he also had a career making etchings. During his life, his paintings garnered much attention and controversy, while his etchings were better received by the public and by critics. When Whistler moved to London in 1859, he began a series of prints of the Thames River and its surrounding area. Whistler used etching and drypoint, a type of intaglio, to create these dynamic prints. Label Type
Object LabelLabel
Nine different versions of this etching and drypoint print exist, each with small differences, such as the features of the figures, additional incisions on the masts and sky, and the color of ink used. Whistler made these changes to increase the drama and density of the lines. Created shortly after Whistler moved to London, this piece depicts a scene from Billingsgate, a small city ward located along the banks of the River Thames near where he lived. In the foreground, a group of men converse on a barge while in the background a crowd moves along the busy wharf.