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| Browse American Art |
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WHY
DOES THE FREER GALLERY HAVE AMERICAN ART?
Charles Lang Freer, founder of the Freer Gallery of Art, was a Detroit
businessman who began collecting American art in the 1880s. In 1890,
he met the American painter James McNeill Whistler (1834–1903),
whose work had been strongly influenced by Japanese prints and Chinese
ceramics. Whistler encouraged Freer to expand his collections to
include Asian art. Freer took his advice, amassing famous collections
of both American and Asian Art, including the world’s greatest
collection of work by Whistler.
AMERICAN COLLECTION
Number of objects: more than 1,500
Historical range: 1855–1919
HIGHLIGHTS
• An unparalleled collection of over 1,300 works by James
McNeill Whistler
• Harmony in Blue and Gold: The Peacock Room, an opulent London
dining room painted by Whistler in 1876–77; the most famous
object in the Freer Gallery
• Comprehensive collections of work by three American artists
influenced by Whistler and by Asian art: Thomas Wilmer Dewing (1851–1938),
Abbott Handerson Thayer (1849–1921), and Dwight William Tryon
(1849–1925)
• Works by turn-of-the-century American artists Childe Hassam
(1859–1935), Winslow Homer (1836–1910), Augustus Saint-Gaudens
(1848–1907), Willard Metcalf (1858–1925), John Singer
Sargent (1856–1925), and John Twachtman (1853–1902)
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Gallery Guide
Take a closer look at American Art.
American Art Exhibitions
• Small Masterpieces: Whistler Paintings from the 1880s
• Peacock Room
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