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

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M.0450
r.: Nude leaning back over balcony; v.: Figure composition

Artist: James McNeill Whistler
Date: 1872/1878
Collection: Whereabouts Unknown
Accession Number: none
Medium: pastel and chalk
Support: brown paper
Size: 13 x 7" (330 x 177 mm)
Signature: none
Inscription: 'JK' (James Knowles) in oval, and 'No [illeg]/ Seashell' in unknown hands

r.: Nude leaning back over balcony; v.: Figure composition

Description

There was a figure composition on the verso, described as 'a sketch for a very elaborate composition. A figure descends a flight of stairs to greet another figure sitting at the bottom. On a raised seat in the background are three other figures very classic in feeling.' 1

Sitter

The nude model has not been identified.

Notes:

1: Memorial Exhibition of the Works of the late James McNeill Whistler, First President of The International Society of Sculptors, Painters and Gravers, New Gallery, Regent Street, London, 1905 (cat. no. 166).

Last updated: 8th March 2021 by Margaret