Green and Blue: The Dancer

This is a small watercolor, about the size of a sheet of notebook paper, showing a young woman in motion. She wears a light, see-through gown that clings and drifts around her body. The colors named in the title, green and blue, appear in her drapery. The paint is laid on in thin, watery layers, so the figure feels light and quick, as if caught between steps. Behind her there is little more than the warm brown of the paper itself. The work is by James McNeill Whistler, and it dates from around 1893.

Start with the paper. It is brown, and you can see it glowing through the thin washes of paint. A wash is a layer of watercolor thinned with plenty of water. Because the brown shows through, the paint looks a little denser, and the veils of fabric around the figure seem to have a quiet weight. Then follow the drapery down the length of her body and notice how softly it is handled. Finally, look for the faint dark lines of chalk beneath the color, which are traces of the first marks the artist made.

Whistler painted this around 1893, during a decade when he was fascinated by the female figure in flowing, nearly transparent clothing. Greek sculpture and Japanese prints inspired him. He explored the theme in many materials, including lithography, oil, pastel, and watercolor. He usually supplied the gowns himself, often classical ones with a high waist and a crossed bodice, paired with brightly colored kerchiefs. His models had to be strong and agile, because he sometimes asked them to dance around his studio until he found the right pose.

Here Whistler used thin washes of watercolor to boil down the graceful movement of his young model into a few light strokes. Rather than recording every fold, he suggests a dance with very little paint. That restraint is what gives the work its charm. Look once more at the figure's gown against the brown ground, and see how much motion he suggests with so little color.