Symbolism & Aestheticism · 1871
Nocturne: Blue and Silver – Chelsea
Nocturne: Blue and Silver – Chelsea (1871) by James McNeill Whistler. Its palette is led by light teal azure (#91b6cf, 44%) and pigeon grey (#779ebb, 21%). Overall the canvas is light, moderately saturated and cool.
Color note
Whistler titled paintings like music, symphonies, nocturnes and arrangements, to put color harmony ahead of subject. Ruskin accused him of flinging a pot of paint in the public's face; Whistler sued him in 1878 and won a farthing in damages.
Palette
- #91b6cf MG 087 light teal azure 43.8% of canvas
- #779ebb MG 208 pigeon grey 20.7% of canvas
- #57809f MG 096 muted azure blue 16.7% of canvas
- #2d4e70 MG 098 dark muted azure blue 12.1% of canvas
- #41698d MG 090 azure 6.7% of canvas
Color families
Blue 94%, Gray 6%, Brown 0%, Black 0%
Measurements
Composition
53% of the visual weight is in the left half, 65% in the upper half. Symmetry 0.42 (how closely its shapes and edges mirror each other). 76% of the canvas is calm space. Half of the detail sits in 30% of the canvas. Measured from the image, not a rule the painter followed.
Details
Share
Download the pin · Save to Pinterest
