Provenance

• 1903: in Whistler's studio at his death in 1903 and bequeathed to his ward and executrix, Rosalind Birnie Philip (1873-1958) ;
• 1935: given by Miss R. Birnie Philip to the University of Glasgow.

Exhibitions

• 1884: 'Notes' - 'Harmonies' - 'Nocturnes', Messrs Dowdeswell, London, 1884 (cat. no. 41) as 'Little Shop; grey note'.
• 1887: probably Exposition Internationale de Peinture et de Sculpture, Galerie Georges Petit, Paris, 1887 (cat. no. 167) as 'Note grise: La petite Boutique'.
• 1888: III. Internationale Kunst-Ausstellung, Königlicher Glaspalast, Munich, 1888 (cat. no. 64) as 'Eine graue Stimmung: Strassen-Ecke'.
• 1905: Œuvres de James McNeill Whistler, Palais de l'Ecole des Beaux-Arts, Paris, 1905 (cat. no. 8) as 'A Grey Note; Village Street'.

The exhibition history is not known for sure but it is likely that despite its modest scale and restrained colour this was one of the small panels shown by Whistler in a series of exhibitions in the 1880s, in this case at Messrs Dowdeswell's in 1884, at the Galerie Georges Petit in Paris in 1887, and an international exhibition in Munich in 1888.

A London newspaper queried a detail: ' "Little Shop – Grey note" offers a puzzle in the foreground. Is the white object a cat, a hen in the first pride of maternity, or a newspaper blown by the winds?' 1

The identity of the picture exhibited in Munich in 1888 is corroborated by a list of works for exhibition in Munich. 2 'Note grise - Coin de rue - Cornwall' was listed as '43 x 35' (centimetres) framed, giving an approximate size of 21.5 x 12.5 cm unframed. This is similar to the sizes given for Grey and Silver: Mist - Life Boat [YMSM 287] ('43 x 34'), White and Grey: La Cour de l'hôtel, Dieppe [YMSM 325] ('44 x 35') and Grey and Brown: The Sad Sea Shore [YMSM 330] ('44 x 35'), which were also in the Munich exhibition.

By the terms of Miss Birnie Philip's gift, the painting cannot now be lent to another venue.