James Abbott McNeill Whistler
American, 1834­1903
Nocturne in Gray and Gold
1872
Oil on canvas
50.5 x 76 cm
Stickney Fund, 1900.52

A nocturne is a quiet, soft musical composition. Whistler named many of his works after musical compositions because he felt that art and music were alike. Here, the gray and gold colors, the calm waters, and the moonlight create a nocturnal mood. 

Whistler was interested in capturing the mood of a specific hour and light, rather than in showing the ships in the harbor. In fact, the simplified forms of the ships are used to frame the expanse of water and sky at the painting’s center.