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According to Walker, in 1894 'a delightful symphony in "silver and grey" by Whistler' was owned by William Connal, Jr., a dealer and collector in Glasgow, later living in London. It was auctioned by him at Christie's on 14 March 1908 (lot 84) as 'Symphony in Silver and Grey' (17 x 29½"), and bought by Gooden & Fox for £50.8.0, on behalf of John A. Harvey. 1 It did not appear in any of the sales of the Harvey collection before or after his death in 1927. 2
1: R. Walker 1894 [more] , at p. 341. Letter from Gooden & Fox to J. W. Revillon, 20 December 1945, GUL WPP file.
2: It is just possible (despite the discrepancy in the size) that it was the painting described by The Scotsman as 'Dawn, Battersea: a symphony in grey and silver', 23 ½ x 17 ½", sold at auction, Christie's, London, 12 June 1936, for £81.18.0; according to the Western Daily Press this was bought by 'Sir Alec Martin for an English collector'. Anon., 'The London Salerooms', The Scotsman, Edinburgh, 13 June 1936, p. 17. Anon., 'Whistler's Pictures auctioned', Western Daily Press, 13 June 1936. Sir Alec Martin (1884-1971, was an auctioneer, Managing Director of Christies, and Chairman of the National Art Collections Fund. However, according to Art Prices Current, vol. 15, 1935-1936, no. 4318, this painting had belonged to L. O'Malley (fl. 1900/1910), and was bought by 'Russell'. This is not a very convincing provenance.
Last updated: 29th May 2021 by Margaret