Detail from The Canal, Amsterdam, 1889, James McNeill Whistler, The Hunterian, University of Glasgow

 

Nude Girl with a Bowl

Nude Girl with a Bowl dates from the early 1890s, possibly between 1892 and 1894. 1


                Nude Girl with a Bowl, The Hunterian
Nude Girl with a Bowl, The Hunterian

A label on the verso written by Harold Wright (1885-1961), probably with information from Whistler's sister-in-law Rosalind Birnie Philip (1873-1958) , states that it was painted in Paris about 1892.


                A Nude Model Arranging Flowers, lithograph (C57), The Hunterian, GLAHA 49228
A Nude Model Arranging Flowers, lithograph (C57), The Hunterian, GLAHA 49228

                A Violet Note, The Hunterian
A Violet Note, The Hunterian

                Spring, Terra Foundation for American Art
Spring, Terra Foundation for American Art

It is close in composition to the lithograph A Nude model arranging flowers (C57), dating from about 1892, and the pastels A Violet Note [M.1395] and Spring [M.1397], which are dated between 1893 and 1895. The inclusion of the trellis links it to depictions of the garden of Whistler's house and studio at 110 rue du Bac, Paris, where the Whistlers lived from 1892 to 1894. 2


                A nude with a bowl, The Hunterian
A nude with a bowl, The Hunterian

The bowl seen in Nude Girl with a Bowl [YMSM 400] appears in several pastels including A nude with a bowl [M.1394] and Spring [M.1397], both thought to date from 1893/1894.

Notes:

1: Dated 'about 1892' in YMSM 1980 [more] (cat. no. 400).

2: i.e. Beatrice Whistler, Designs for a trellis for 86 rue Notre Dame des Champs, Paris, watercolour, 1892/1894, The Hunterian, GLAHA 46574; and J. McN. Whistler, The Garden Porch (C.88) lithograph, 1894, GLAHA 49183.

Last updated: 30th November 2020 by Margaret