Whistler chose his very own mother, Anna McNeill Whistler, to model for the painting, and it wasn't an unusual choice, for the two were exceptionally close. Born in 1784 in North Carolina, the painter's mother would marry George Washington Whistlere in 1831, and even if he was a widow who already had three children, it was a happy marriage. In the 1840s the family moved to Russia, where George had a contract as a railroad engineer, and after his death Anna and the children returned to the USA and settled in Connecticut. It was after the war that Anna McNeill Whistler came to live with James in London. It was she that supported and encouraged James Whistler to follow his calling, and at one time she would pose for what was to be his most popular work. Titled "Arrangement in Grey and Black No.1 Portrait of the Artist’s Mother” it was one of the artist's favourites and would enjoy a surprising popularity.
While the artist's mother passed away in 1881, the work would eventually be bought by the French state in 1891 and can nowadays be seen at the Musee d'Orsay in Paris.
Photo: wikipedia.org
