Titles
Only one main title is known:
- 'The Boy in a Cloak' (1905, Œuvres de James McNeill Whistler, Paris). 1
- 'Boy in a Cloak' (1936, University of Glasgow). 2
- 'The Boy in a Cloak' (1980, YMSM). 3
'The Boy in a Cloak' is the preferred title.
Description
The Boy in a Cloak, The Hunterian
A three-quarter length portrait of a boy, in vertical format. He stands in three-quarter view to left, looking at the viewer. He has shoulder-length brown hair, and wears a long dark cloak. He stands against a dark green background.
Sitter
Charles Lang Freer (1856-1919) of Detroit recorded seeing a portrait, 'Boy in the cloak' in Whistler's studio in 1903. 4 Freer also noted that Whistler had painted another portrait of this 'little boy with fine eyes'; he was also the model for Brun et or: De race [YMSM 511].
Brun et or: De race, The Hunterian
The model's brother and sister also posed for Whistler (The Little Faustina [YMSM 510], Vert et or: Le Raconteur [YMSM 513]). There is a strong family resemblance, particularly in their sallow colouring and the soft brown of the hair and eyes.
Last updated: 25th November 2020 by Margaret
