Nocturne in Black and Gold: The Falling Rocket
1875 · Oil on panel · Detroit Institute of Arts
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This print
About this work
- Artist
- James McNeill Whistler (1834–1903)
- Year
- 1875
- Medium
- Oil on panel
- Original size
- 60.3 × 46.4 cm
- Collection
- Detroit Institute of Arts
- Movement
- Tonalism
Sparks from a firework drift down through the dark over Cremorne Gardens, a pleasure garden on the Thames at Chelsea, with faint figures and smoke below. When it was shown in 1877 the critic John Ruskin accused Whistler of 'flinging a pot of paint in the public's face'; Whistler sued for libel and won, but was awarded a single farthing in damages, and the costs bankrupted him. The painting is in the Detroit Institute of Arts.
This full-bleed edition prints the work edge to edge from a high-resolution scan of the original, very slightly cropped (a few percent at most) to fit the sheet. The gallery edition shows the whole work, uncropped. The original is in the public domain.
Where it works
A near-abstract night picture of black and gold sparks for a living room, study or bar in a black frame. It suits charcoal, navy or deep green walls and pairs with Ryder's moonlit pictures.
Style, size & framing detail
- Style
- Tonalism painting
- Era
- 19th century (1875)
- Orientation
- Portrait
- Mood
- dramatic, moody
- Rooms
- living room, study or library, dining room
- Good gift for
- housewarming, art lovers
Size. Prints at 12×16, 18×24, 24×32 in — 12×16 for a shelf, desk or a gallery-wall grid; 18×24 above a desk, console or in a hallway; 24×32 as the statement piece above a sofa or bed.
Framing. Printed edge to edge: a slim black or dark wood frame right to the image, or let the canvas wrap do the framing. Also available gallery-wrapped on canvas, ready to hang with no frame.
Pairing. Pairs as a set of three with other famous painting prints (10% off three or more).
Details & materials
Shipping & returns
Is this the whole painting, or a crop?
Is Nocturne in Black and Gold: The Falling Rocket in the public domain?
What is it printed on?
When was Nocturne in Black and Gold: The Falling Rocket painted, and in what medium?
What size works above a sofa or bed?
About this design
The Madten promise
An exhibition poster
The same artwork as a gallery exhibition poster — title, artist & date typeset beneath the image on a soft ground.
A fine-art print
The same artwork as a clean fine-art print — the image shown large with a minimal caption.
