Snapshots of the Past

Nocturne – Vintage Print

Nocturne, [1879 or 1880] — historic print
Nocturne, [1879 or 1880]. Historic print from the Sailing & Yachts collection.

(Originally scanned by the Library of Congress. Each image is professionally and digitally cleaned of artifacts such as color bars and extra borders prior to printing.)

Description

Few images capture their era like this historic print of Nocturne. It comes from the collections of the Library of Congress, scanned from the original and carefully restored.

Framed, it is ready for the wall; unframed, it is ready for the frame you choose. A conversation-starting piece for home, office, or as a meaningful gift. Free shipping in the lower 48 states. Since 2001, Snapshots of the Past has shipped historic prints to tens of thousands of customers around the world.

Nocturne

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Whistler's *Nocturne* belongs to the First Venice set, the etchings he made during his stay in Venice around 1879 and 1880. The title reflects his habit of borrowing musical terms for paintings and prints that treat atmosphere and mood over literal detail. Here the water and the dark forms of boats dissolve into soft gray tones, an effect helped by drypoint, which leaves a rough burr that holds ink and gives the lines a velvety depth. The sheet is signed in pencil with Whistler's butterfly monogram, and this impression is held by the Library of Congress as part of the Gardiner Greene Hubbard Collection.

Created / published[1879 or 1880]
Medium1 print : etching with drypoint ; 20.1 x 29.7 cm (plate), 25.6 x 35.6 cm (sheet)
GenreMarines (Visual works) 1870-1880.Etchings 1870-1880.
NotesTitle from item. Signed in pencil with butterfly. From: First Venice set. Kennedy, no. 184 (fourth state) Library of Congress prints and photographs: an illustrated guide / Library of Congress. Washington, D.C. : Library of Congress, 1995, p. 20 Forms part of: Gardiner Greene Hubbard Collection (Library of Congress). Published in: Viewpoints; a selection from the pictorial collections of the Library of Congress .... Washington : Library of Congress ..., 1975, no. 195. Exhibited: Whistler and his circle in Venice, Corcoran Gallery, Washington, D.C., 2003.
SubjectsNight--1870-1880.
SourceLibrary of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division
Original scan1,474 × 1,201 px · prints to 5 × 4 in at 300 dpi
ReferenceAMZ-SOTP-HPA-217840

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