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

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Three butterflies

Composition


                    Three Butterflies, Freer Gallery of Art
Three Butterflies, Freer Gallery of Art

Designed for Whistler 1890 [more] . The top butterfly was for p. 114: 'The Easy Expert', a letter to Atlas, The World, 30 January 1884, about Atlas mistaking oils for watercolours and etchings for photographs. Below it, the butterfly on the right was not used, but the one at lower left, as corrected, was for p. 165: 'Quand même!', about a letter from Oscar Wilde (1854-1900) to the World, 24 November 1886, to which Whistler added a comment, '"A poor thing," Oscar!- but, for once, I suppose "your own."'

Technique

It appears to be in crayon, possibly lithographic crayon, with corrections in white paint.

Last updated: 14th December 2019 by Margaret