惠斯勒出生于马萨诸塞州,21岁时怀着成为艺术家的雄心前往巴黎。他在伦敦建立起事业,从此未曾返回祖国。多年后,他成为19世纪美术史上最前卫的画家之一。作为一名旅居者,惠斯勒没有受到为道德而艺术的美国趋势的影响。相反,他甚至追求唯美主义,即“为艺术而艺术”(art for art's sake),这种理论认为美感应当是艺术追求的唯一目标。
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