Titles
Only one title is known:
- 'Arrangement in violet and pink. (Portrait of Mrs. Walter Sickert)' (1887, Royal Society of British Artists). 1
- 'Arrangement in Violet and Pink: Mrs Walter Sickert' (1980, YMSM). 2
The punctuation was simplified for the 1980 catalogue, so 'Arrangement in Violet and Pink: Mrs Walter Sickert' is the preferred title.
Description
The Artist described it as 'a full-length portrait of Mrs. Walter Sickert, an “Arrangement in Violet and Pink,” eminently powerful in handling, and full of refinement.' 3 The Sunday Times commented on the dress and décor: 'The dark violet dress ... against a pink curtain, and relieved by the red of a pretty hat and handkerchief is a masterly piece of painting. The right arm daintily holds the dress, while the left carries the hat.' 4 The Illustrated London News, however, described the dress as black silk, and the Standard said her hat was trimmed with red. 5
Sitter
Ellen Mellicent Sickert (1848-1914) .
Green and Violet: Portrait of Mrs Walter Sickert, Fogg Art Museum
She also posed for the portrait reproduced above, Green and Violet: Portrait of Mrs Walter Sickert [YMSM 338].
Notes:
1: 64th Annual Exhibition, Royal Society of British Artists, London, 1887 (cat. no. 157).
2: YMSM 1980 [more] (cat. no. 337).
3: The Artist and Journal of Home Culture, 1887, vol. 8, p. 149.
4: Sunday Times, 17 April 1887; press cutting in GUL Whistler PC 7, pp. 73, 75.
5: The Illustrated London News, 1887, vol. 90, p. 406; Standard, undated press cutting, [April 1887]: press cuttings in GUL Whistler PC 7, pp. 73, 75.
Last updated: 12th November 2020 by Margaret
