James Abbott McNeill Whistler
Whistler was a great fan and collector of Japanese art which became very fashionable in the late-19th century. This European craze for Japanese art - notably fans, screens, lacquers, bronzes, silks, porcelains and Ukiyo-e woodblock prints - was followed by the decision taken in 1854 by the Tokugawa Shogunate to open up its seaports to international trade with the West. Whistler was one of the earliest devotees of Japonism. He acquired a good collection during his years in Paris before coming to England in 1859. He also introduced the Pre-Raphaelite Dante Gabriel Rossetti to Japanese art, thus initiating a Japanese cult within this Bohemian circle.
This painting is a mixture of Whistler's visual influences. The artist combined a flattened picture plane and Asian-inspired setting with references to a Greek frieze, with figures sculpted or painted against a plain background. His models wore fashionable Victorian costumes, setting the scene clearly in the present day. What about the title? Whistler was interested in the relations between music and visual arts - this is why he often entitled his works with musical terms.
Help us and donate so we will be able to release the new version of DailyArt this autumn: http://support.getdailyart.com