Jo's Bent Head
Medium
drypoint on laid paper
Dimensions
plate: 22.86 x 15.24 cm (9 x 6 in.) sheet: 29.21 x 19.37 cm (11 1/2 x 7 5/8 in.)
Classification
Department
CG-W
Museum
National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
Credit
Rosenwald Collection
Accession Number
1943.3.8451
Art Historical Context
"Jo's Bent Head" (1861) is a delicate drypoint print by James McNeill Whistler, the innovative American-born artist renowned for his advocacy of "art for art's sake" and subtle tonal harmonies. Capturing the bent head of his muse, Joanna Hiffernan—affectionately known as "Jo"—this intimate portrait exemplifies Whistler's early mastery of printmaking during his Thames-side experiments in London. Created amid the bustling Victorian era, it reflects his fascination with everyday subjects elevated through aesthetic refinement, distancing from narrative storytelling. Whistler's use of drypoint on ...
About the Artist
James McNeill Whistler · 1834–1903
James Abbott McNeill Whistler (1834-1903) was an American-born painter and printmaker who became a leading figure in the Aesthetic Movement and pioneer of Tonalism and Japonisme. He revolutionized art by championing "art for art's sake" and treating paintings as visual equivalents of musical compositions, titling works as "arrangements," "harmonies," and "nocturnes" to emphasize formal qualities o...