Polish paintings at the international exhibition at the French Museum of Fine Arts in Rouen can be viewed until 22 September 2024. The exhibition "James Abbott McNeill Whistler: The Butterfly Effect" opened on 24 May 2024 and focuses on the phenomenon of Whistlerism – an artistic current started by James Whistler in the 19th century. Two paintings by Olga Boznańska are also displayed among the works of artists who adopted this style.
James Whistler – pioneer and inspirer
The exhibition "James Abbott McNeill Whistler: The Butterfly Effect" showcases the work of James Whistler, an American painter and printmaker and a forerunner of Whistlerism. Whistler was active as an artist in the second half of the 19th century and in the early 20th century, mainly in Great Britain. His work is characterised by subtlety and delicacy, symbolised by the shape of a butterfly with a long sting that appears on his works as a signature. The painter, who created both watercolours and oil paintings, is also known for combining the art of painting with music, as reflected in the many titles of his works such as: 'arrangements’, ‘harmonies’ and ‘nocturnes’. Whistler was also a representative of total art, highly regarded by the artistic elite at the time, combining poetry, music and the art of living. In his works, one can find inspirations drawn from Impressionism and Realism, as well as the impact of Dandyism, Japanism, Anglomania or fascination with the Spanish Golden Age.
Photo Musée des Beaux-Arts de Rouen
The strength of his work lies in the popularity his artistic pursuits have gained. The nocturnal landscapes and hieratic portraits, being common forms in Whistler’s work, quickly spread to Europe and the United States as artists on those two continents began to process them, inspired by the charm and new perspective that Whistlerism offered.
The Museum in Rouen sheds a new perspective on his work: the one seen through the lens of artists who observed Whistler, were inspired by him or met with him to exchange experiences. This is an unprecedented exhibition bringing together the works of painters active in this current under one roof, with the aim of starting a dialogue that goes beyond the phenomenon of Whistlerism itself. It also forms an opportunity to visualise the magnitude of Whistler’s influence on contemporary painters and to look at this phenomenon as a new perspective for studying trends such as Impressionism and Symbolism.
Olga Boznańska in the context of Whistlerism
The Polish representation of Whistlerist inspirations comes in the form of two portraits by Olga Boznańska, which were selected to be included in the Rouen Museum space. These are "Portrait of a Woman in a White Dress" from 1912 (Musée d'Orsay) and "Girl with a White Handkerchief" from 1890 (private collection).
This is how Ewa Bobrowska, PhD, author of the text for the catalogue accompanying the exhibition, writes about Whistler’s inspirations behind Boznańska’s work: In Pensive Woman (1889), Boznańska again alludes to the "Portrait of Artist’s Mother", placing her sitter in the same pose as Anna Matilda Whistler, with her body seen in profile, her hands clasped on her thighs and clutching a white handkerchief. Drawing inspiration from Whistler, Boznańska engaged in a kind of dialogue based on the opposition between a young girl painted in a range of light tones: darkened white and pinkish beige, and an image of an older woman painted with a dark palette composed of black and grey. Both models are oblivious to the presence of the viewer, completely immersed in their own world: gentler for the young girl, sadder and rougher for the older woman.
Photo Musée des Beaux-Arts de Rouen
The exhibition also provides an extraordinary opportunity to explore the relationship between France and Poland – indirectly – through the figure of Whistler, who became a role model for an entire generation of Polish artists at the turn of the 20th century. This topic has not been widely described so far and has remained a sort of a dead end of research, that is why the presentation of works at the international exhibition will allow to discover and explore it anew.
To learn more, read the archival culture.pl interview “Agnieszka Morawinska: Boznańska and Whistler are a real fluke”.
Photo Musée des Beaux-Arts de Rouen
Not just an exhibition: a scientific conference and a concert by a Polish pianist
The presentation of works from the Whistlerist current is accompanied by a scientific conference and a recital by a Polish pianist.
Scientific conference ‘New Research Developments on Whistlerism’ (21-22 June 2024)
As part of the fifth edition of the Normandy Impressionist Festival, the University of Rouen and the University of Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne, in cooperation with Laboratoire HICSA, organised an international conference on Whistlerism.
The conference aimed to offer a new perspective on Whistlerism by examining its formative process, its history and its wide influence on various artistic and cultural fields. Scholars and enthusiasts discussed the impact of this trend on literature, poetry, art criticism, aesthetics and cinema, taking into account a comprehensive view of the phenomenon.
Four Polish researchers also participated in the conference: Aleksandra Budrewicz, PhD, Agnieszka Kluczewska-Wójcik, PhD, Ewa Bobrowska, PhD, and Urszula Kozakowska-Zaucha.
Recital of the Polish pianist Magdalena Lisak (20 September 2024)
A recital by pianist Magdalena Lisak, which will take place on 20 September at 8:00 pm at the Museum, will be a Polish feature closing the exhibition.
Magdalena Lisak, a participant in the 13th International Fryderyk Chopin Piano Competition as well as a founder and president of the Silesian Music Society, will perform compositions by Chopin, Szymanowski, Landowska, Janotha and Zarębski.
The Adam Mickiewicz Institute invites you to visit the exhibition!
Curators: Laura Valette, PhD, Florence Calame-Levert
Organiser: Musée des Beaux-Arts de Rouen,
Partners: Musée d’Orsay, Préfet de la région Normandie, Université de Rouen, Université Paris 1 Panthéon Sorbonne-Laboratoire HICSA, Adam Mickiewicz Institute