Technique

Writing on the Wall, Freer Gallery of Art

The soft, contimnuous black outlines separate planes of shading and colour. On her legs, the pastel was rubbed in, with streaks of pastel added as highlights. Her hips catch the light, where pastel was rubbed and scumbled over the surface. The round end of the pastel was used to model the body, with soft blocks of cream colour moulded with the artist's finger. It is not obvious what, if any, alterations were made over the several years that Whistler kept it.

Conservation History

The dull, dark brown paper has a fine vertical grain and is dark at the edge, where it is slightly marked by the mount.