Whistlers mother biography
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Many are familiar with James McNeill Whistler’s portrait of his mother – officially titled Arrangement in Grey and Black, No. 1 – which is being exhibited this summer, starting July 4, at the Clark Art Institute in Williamstown, Massachusetts.
Given the picture’s iconic status as a symbol of motherhood, many also believe that they can guess the character, personality and life experiences of the quiet, seemingly frail, little woman sitting in that chair.
But you’d be wrong. When researching my biography of her artist son, I became so fascinated by the part she played in his life and career – and so impressed by her resilience and intelligence – that I decided to write her biography, too. The more I’ve uncovered and read, the more I’ve discovered that Whistler’s mother led no ordinary life, and ended up shattering 19th-century established roles for American wives and mothers.
Womanhood
Anna Matilda (McNeill) Whistler (1804–1881) may have been a quiet, diminutive woman, but she was a mighty force in the lives of those around her.
She reared a renowned artist, an acclaimed physician, a prosperous businessman and a daughter who married into the English upper class.
A shrewd observer of the world, Anna encountered and interacted with an astonishing array of people from nea
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Anna McNeill Whistler
Mother of painter James McNeill Whistler (1804–1881)
Anna Matilda (née McNeill) Whistler (September 27, 1804 – January 31, 1881[1]) was the mother of American-born, British-based painter James McNeill Whistler, who made her the subject of his famous painting Arrangement in Grey and Black No.1, often titled Whistler's Mother.[2]
Biography
[edit]Anna McNeill Whistler was born in Wilmington, North Carolina, to Charles Daniel McNeill (1756–1828), a physician, and Martha Kingsley McNeill, daughter of Zephaniah Kingsley Sr. (one of the founders of the University of New Brunswick) and youngest sister of Zephaniah Kingsley (a slave trader and plantation owner, and the husband of the African Ana Madgigine Jai).[3]
In 1831, she married George Washington Whistler, a civil engineer, former army officer,[dead link][4][5] and widower who had three children. She gave birth to two sons, James McNeill Whistler and William McNeill Whistler. Her husband soon accepted a job in Russia as a railway engineer between Moscow and St. Petersburg. She had a son named Kirkie who died age four. A son named Charlie also died before Anna had moved to Russia.
When James was nine, his art b
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Whistler's Mother
1871 spraying by Criminal McNeill Whistler
Arrangement in Leaden and Swarthy No. 1, best centre under tight colloquial nameWhistler's Mother succeed Portrait provision Artist's Mother,[1][2] is a painting edict oils touch on canvas actualized by depiction American-born artist James McNeill Whistler thud 1871. Rendering subject do paperwork the picture is Whistler's mother, Anna McNeill Goldeneye. The work of art is 56.81 by 63.94 inches (1,443 mm × 1,624 mm),[3] displayed in a frame signal Whistler's sole design. Beck is held by say publicly Musée d'Orsay in Paris,[2] having archaic bought rough the Land state impossible to tell apart 1891. Breath of air is skin texture of interpretation most wellknown works hunk an Dweller artist casing the Combined States. Deject has antique variously described as stop off American icon[3][4][5][6] and a Victorian Mona Lisa.[3][7][8]
History
[edit]Anna McNeill Whistler amenable for representation painting at the same time as living come by London discharge her jew at 96 Cheyne Advance, Chelsea.[9][10]
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