From 1858 till 18S9 Whistler resided chiefly in London, making frequent journeys to Paris, and it was at this period that he executed most of his principal works. Bost known among them is the portrait of the "Artist's Mother" (Luxem bourg)—an arrangement in gray and black, ex ecuted with rather more detail than most of his works. It is impossible to conceive of a more charming picture of placid domesticity than this dear, old-fashioned lady. Of equal merit is his portrait of Carlyle (1872, Glas gow Museum), in which he has immortalized the grand old thinker. Iu s portrait of the little Miss Alexander, an arrangement in gray and green, is infinitely delicate and subtle in execu tion. These portraits are not mere faces or fig ures, but rather figure paintings, in which the well-arranged backgrounds are as masterful and as essential as the images. Other celebrated ex amples of female portraits are Rose Whistler (1802, Boston 'Museum), Lady Archibald Camp bell (1888. Philadelphia). Miss Rosa Corder (Richard Canfield), "Lady in a Fur Jacket." and Lady .Aleux„ an arrangement in pink and gray. His portraits of men include those of his friend Theodore Duret, Comte de Montesquieu (Richard Canfield), and the violinist Sarasate, an arrange ment in black (Pittsburg Academy). Among his celebrated figure subjects are "At the Piano" (1867), showing the passing influence of his friend Rossetti; "La princesse du pays de la po•celaine" (1868) ; the "Music Room." a har mony in green and gold; the "Balcony:" and the wonderful "Symphony in White, No. 3," almost Hellenic in spirit.
Few artists had as broad a range of subjects as Whistler. His landscapes portray the mys terious beauty of the night and the majesty of the ocean; who before him saw the splendor of the London fog? Be discovered beauty in all about him, in the squalid quarters of London and in the commonplace of the drawing-room as well as in the magic canals of Venice. Among his principal 'Nocturnes' are the "Falling Rockets" (black and gold) ; "Saint Mark's, Venice" (blue and gold) : "Battersea Beach" (blue and silver) : and "Chelsea Snow" (gray and gold). Among marine views are "Valparaiso Harbor," a twilight scene in flesh color and green; "Blue Wave, Biarritz:" and "The Ocean" (gray and green). To these must be added some of the many views of London, like "Trafalgar Square," "Last of Old Westminster," and "Westminster Bridge." He also executed many fascinating water-colors, and his Venetian pastelles certainly equal. in delicacy and refinement, anything that has yet been done in that medium.
As a decorator Whistler was equally impor tant, and his soft restful colors have exercised a wide influence upon household decoration. Among his best known decorations are the music room of his friend Sarasate in white and clove color (Paris) : the celebrated "Peacock Boom" in Mr. Leyland's house (London). in blue and gold, the motive of which is derived from the eye in the feathers of a peacock's tail; and his own heautiful house in London.
For a long time Whistler did not meet with deserved recognition. In 1887 he was elected president of the Royal Society of British Artists; under his administration the quality of art ex hibited IT the society greatly improved. hut its finances declined, and in 1889 Whistler and his following withdrew. lie himself said. "The artists have come out, and the British remain." At. the close of 1889, when he received the Cross of the Legion of Honor (Officer, 1891), he re moved to Paris, residing there until a short time before his death in London, July 17, 1903. The appreciation so long denied him was in his last years fully meted out to him. lle was made hon orary member of the academics of Munich, Dres den, Rome, etc., Knight of the Bavarian Order of Saint Michael, and in 1900 he received the gold medal at the Paris exposition. He became the head of an important school, composed chiefly of young Americans. During the last period, his works were not frequently exhibited, his brush was by no means idle. Not the least interesting of these last works are the portraits of himself seated in his studio, and of his sister. in-law.
It is perhaps too early to estimate Whistler's position in the development of art. lie was es sentially modern, and something of all the most modern tendencies of art centred in him, and yet he was absolutely independent of them all. An avowed realist, he differed from others in that nature merely supplied him the material for color harmonies. paintings were often impressions. but, unlike the so-called Impres sionists, he was not primarily a painter of light, preferring sad colors. He resembled the Jap anese in the peculiar decorative character of his work.especially in the treatment of detail. and in a wonderful power of selection. The effect of his work is subtle and dreamy, like that of a vision rather than of bald reality. Although lie was a fine draughtsman, color was to him the chief factor in painting, and not even Velazquez was a greater master of color values. His brush work was careful and painstaking, although in the fin ished painting no trace of effort can be seen. The full extent of his influence is at present difficult to estimate; but it has already materially affected the French, British, and American schools. It is no exaggeration to say that Whistler was one of the greatest painters of the later nineteenth century, if not of all times.
Whistler's theories of art were so essentially cosmopolitan that it is surprising to learn from his friend Pennell. the etcher, that his ambition was for America, and that lie greatly wished his pictures to come into Ameriean hands. This wish was gratified, for in the public galleries in Boston. Philadelphia, and Chicago. and in pri vate possession in Connecticut, New York, Phila delphia, and elsewhere, may be seen fine exam ples of his work.