The Paintings of James McNeill Whistler

Date

Study for the portrait of Miss Cicely Alexander dates from about 1872.

Study for the portrait of Miss Cicely Alexander, Fitzwilliam Museum

The drawing was partially catalogued in MacDonald 1995 (cat. rais.) [more] (cat. no. 505) but has since been located: additional information is recorded below.

Images

Subject

Sitter

Study for the portrait of Miss Cicely Alexander, Fitzwilliam Museum

Cicely Henrietta Alexander (1864-1932).

Technique

Composition

Study for the portrait of Miss Cicely Alexander, Fitzwilliam Museum

Harmony in Grey and Green: Miss Cicely Alexander, Tate Britain

This is a study for the composition of Harmony in Grey and Green: Miss Cicely Alexander y129.

Technique

Study for the portrait of Miss Cicely Alexander, Fitzwilliam Museum

This figure was drawn with bold strokes on the rough paper; the floor and background were drawn more evenly, possibly with the side of the pastel, possibly rubbed for a smoother effect. There are pentimenti on the legs, and the face has no features, yet the figure is drawn confidently and the total effect is vivid, conveying the impact of the painting.

History

Provenance

• 1870s: acquired, probably from the artist, by William Cleverly Alexander (1840-1916);
• 1916: passed by family descent to relatives of W. C. Alexander;
• 2016: accepted by H. M. Government in Lieu of Inheritance Tax and allocated to the Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge.

Exhibitions

• 1903: possibly Collection of Pictures, Drawings, Prints and China, and Decorative Furniture, Burlington Fine Arts Club, London, 1903 (cat. no. 33) as 'Pastel Sketch'.

Bibliography

Catalogues Raisonnés

• MacDonald, Margaret F., James McNeill Whistler. Drawings, Pastels and Watercolours. A Catalogue Raisonné, New Haven and London, 1995 (cat. no. 505) as 'Study for the portrait of Miss Cicely Alexander'.
• Young, Andrew McLaren, Margaret F. MacDonald, Robin Spencer, and Hamish Miles, The Paintings of James McNeill Whistler, New Haven and London, 1980 (oil, cat. no. 129).

Websites

• Hale, Felix, 'Whistler's Women to join Fitzwilliam Museum Collection', Sotheby's, 11 December 2016, Blog, repr.
• 'Whistler Studies Allocated to the Fitzwilliam', Fitzwilliam Museum 2016, website.
• 'The Study for a Masterpiece on Display after 100 years', press release, 12 December 2016, Fitzwilliam Museum, Website, repr.
• Fitzwilliam Museum website.

Other

• Whistler Society, Newsletter, London, December 2016.