Individual Media Tours for the Exhibition “Ruffled Feathers: Creating Whistler's Peacock Room”

Members of the media are invited to view the exhibition “Ruffled Feathers: Creating Whistler's Peacock Room” at the National Museum of Asian Art. From the moment of its creation, the Peacock Room has been a personal, artistic and cultural battleground. Created by artist James McNeill Whistler (1834–1903) for the London home of British businessman Frederick Leyland, the room has a dramatic and complex origin story that works in the Freer Gallery of Art collection help reveal.

Situating audiences in London during the room’s formation between 1874 and 1876, “Ruffled Feathers” offers a unique opportunity to see intimate and formal portraits Whistler created of the Leyland family that chronicle the personal relationships that flourished and fractured over the course of the room’s creation. Additional paintings and examples of design from Leyland’s home help people understand how Whistler incorporated motifs sourced from Asia throughout his designs. The project also spurred a new era of artistic experimentation for the artist. On view next to the Peacock Room, “Ruffled Feathers” invites people to explore this famous interior’s tangled history through paintings, works on paper and decorative art. 

Note to editors: Media may contact Jennifer Mitchell at mitchellja@si.edu for more information or to schedule a time to interview the curator and tour the exhibition.

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