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

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M.0007
St Petersburg Sketchbook

Artist: James McNeill Whistler
Date: 1844-1848
Collection: The Hunterian, University of Glasgow
Accession Number: GLAHA 46004
Medium: pencil, watercolour, pen, chalk
Support: off-white wove paper
Size: boards 5 9/16 x 8 5/16", paper 5 9/16 x 8" (boards 148 x 212 mm, paper 142 x 204 mm)
Signature: 'James Whistler' (inside front cover)
Inscription: various

St Petersburg Sketchbook

Site

'The Academy of Fine Arts in St Petersburg; a man bending over a sleeping man; studies of heads', St Petersburg Sketchbook, p. 9, The Hunterian
'The Academy of Fine Arts in St Petersburg; a man bending over a sleeping man; studies of heads', St Petersburg Sketchbook, p. 9, The Hunterian

Drawings of the Academy of Fine Arts in St Petersburg, Russia, appear on pp. 9, 26.

Sitter

'George Washington Whistler', St Petersburg Sketchbook, p. 29, The Hunterian
'George Washington Whistler', St Petersburg Sketchbook, p. 29, The Hunterian
'Two male portraits', St Petersburg Sketchbook, p. 56, The Hunterian
'Two male portraits', St Petersburg Sketchbook, p. 56, The Hunterian
'Studies of a woman supporting a man, an old man, and the portrait of a lady', inscr. 'Finis.', St Petersburg Sketchbook, p. 72, The Hunterian
'Studies of a woman supporting a man, an old man, and the portrait of a lady', inscr. 'Finis.', St Petersburg Sketchbook, p. 72, The Hunterian

It includes portraits of Whistler's mother, Anna Matilda Whistler (1804-1881) (p. 72) and his father George Washington Whistler (1800-1849) on pp. 29 and 56.

'Selfportraits, an old man with a cloak over one shoulder, two robed men, and a man with a brush', St Petersburg Sketchbook, p. 5, The Hunterian
'Selfportraits, an old man with a cloak over one shoulder, two robed men, and a man with a brush', St Petersburg Sketchbook, p. 5, The Hunterian

There is a self-portrait of James McNeill Whistler (1834-1903) on p. 5.

'Studies of two men fighting, of faces, including a child, and of figures, including a robed figure leaning on a wall', St Petersburg Sketchbook, p. 10, The Hunterian
'Studies of two men fighting, of faces, including a child, and of figures, including a robed figure leaning on a wall', St Petersburg Sketchbook, p. 10, The Hunterian
'Studies of a seated figure and a winged cherub', St Petersburg Sketchbook, p. 14, The Hunterian
'Studies of a seated figure and a winged cherub', St Petersburg Sketchbook, p. 14, The Hunterian

Two sketches (pp. 10, 14) may show Whistler's younger brother William McNeill Whistler (1836-1900) .

'Portrait of a young woman; studies of a mermaid; head of a bearded man', inscr. `"Oh 'tis pleasant to float on the Sea -"/ the Mermaid's song from "Oberon".' and 'The mermaid'/"This morning/ C.L" ', by C. Lidderdale, St Petersburg Sketchbook, p. 27, The Hunterian
'Portrait of a young woman; studies of a mermaid; head of a bearded man', inscr. `"Oh 'tis pleasant to float on the Sea -"/ the Mermaid's song from "Oberon".' and 'The mermaid'/"This morning/ C.L" ', by C. Lidderdale, St Petersburg Sketchbook, p. 27, The Hunterian

Their half-sister Deborah Delano Haden (1825-1908) may be the young woman on p. 27.

'Heads of Midas, Istvastchic and a man in a turban', inscr. 'Midas' and 'Istvastchic', St Petersburg Sketchbook, p. 7, The Hunterian
'Heads of Midas, Istvastchic and a man in a turban', inscr. 'Midas' and 'Istvastchic', St Petersburg Sketchbook, p. 7, The Hunterian

There are also portraits of servants as well as imaginary and exotic figures.

A. O. Koritzkii after Brioullov, 'Napoleon Bonaparte', St Petersburg Sketchbook, p. 23, The Hunterian
A. O. Koritzkii after Brioullov, 'Napoleon Bonaparte', St Petersburg Sketchbook, p. 23, The Hunterian

A sketch of Napoleon (p. 23) was drawn by Whistler's tutor, Aleksander Osipovich Koritzkii, after a portrait by the history painter Alexandre Pavlovitch Brioullov (1799-1852), professor at the Academie des Beaux Arts.

Last updated: 6th December 2020 by Margaret