The Palaces
Medium
Etching, drypoint and open bite (?); fifth state of six (Glasgow); Printed in black ink on fine ivory laid paper
Dimensions
plate: 9 15/16 x 14 in. (25.2 x 35.6 cm) plate: 11 x 14 5/8 in. (27.9 x 37.1 cm)
Classification
Prints
Department
Drawings and Prints
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Gift of Felix M. Warburg and his family, 1941
Accession Number
41.1.196
Tags
Art Historical Context
James McNeill Whistler, leading figure in the Aesthetic movement and champion of "art for art sake," created *The Palaces* in 1879 during his transformative visit to Venice. Amid financial struggles, Whistler produced a renowned series of etchings known as the "Venice Set," capturing the city's waterways and grand architecture. This print depicts the iconic palaces along the Grand Canal, with boats gliding in the foreground, evoking's timeless allure through soft, atmospheric effects rather than precise details. Printed in black ink on fine ivory laid paper, *The Palaces* is an etching combin...
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...