James McNeill Whistler
circa 1872–1877
Oil on canvas
60.3 cm × 46.6 cm (23.7 in × 18.3 in)
Detroit Institute of Arts, Detroit
This painting was the subject of a landmark libel trial in 1877. The art critic John Ruskin accused Whistler of “flinging a pot of paint in the public’s face” with his painting, and Whistler sued Ruskin for libel. The trial was a highly publicized event, and it helped to raise the profile of Whistler and his work.
New artistic movements are frequently looked down on by critics. I like something like this more than his whistler’s mother painting.