The Paintings of James McNeill Whistler

Date

Design for a poster for 'Nocturnes, Marines and Chevalet Pieces' was drawn in a letter from Whistler to Thomas Way (1837-1915), dated 6 March 1892. ¹

Design for a poster for 'Nocturnes, Marines and Chevalet Pieces', Freer Gallery of Art

It was catalogued in MacDonald 1995 (cat. rais.) [more] (cat. no. 1331).

Images

Subject

Description

Design for a poster for 'Nocturnes, Marines and Chevalet Pieces', Freer Gallery of Art

The wording within the poster reads 'Mr.Whistler/ Goupil Galleries'. The relevant text in the letter reads:

'Poster. You will understand the corrections - Would like the whole thing to look whiter- that is more brought together- or rather larger margin -

- top/ to look' [poster with text 'Mr.Whistler/ Goupil Galleries'] 'like this -

- bottom

No stops or commas.' ²

Technique

Composition

Design for a poster for 'Nocturnes, Marines and Chevalet Pieces', Freer Gallery of Art

This design was for a poster for Whistler's retrospective exhibition, Nocturnes, Marines & Chevalet Pieces, Goupil Gallery, London, 1892.

Conservation History

This letter is on what are now two sheets of paper, repaired with gauze, but was originally one folded sheet (the watermark runs across both sheets), with traces of three additional folds across the sheet, one through and two below the butterfly. The paper is now a dark shade of cream.

History

Provenance

• 1892: sent by Whistler to Thomas Way (1837-1915);
• 1904/1905: probably sold by Way to Charles Lang Freer (1856-1919), Detroit;
• 1919: bequeathed to the Freer Gallery of Art.

Exhibitions

It was not exhibited in Whistler's lifetime.

Bibliography

Catalogues Raisonnés

• MacDonald, Margaret F., James McNeill Whistler. Drawings, Pastels and Watercolours. A Catalogue Raisonné, New Haven and London, 1995 (cat. no. 1331) as "Design for a poster for 'Nocturnes, Marines and Chevalet Pieces' ".

Websites

• The Correspondence of James McNeill Whistler, 1855-1903, edited by Margaret F. MacDonald, Patricia de Montfort and Nigel Thorp; including The Correspondence of Anna McNeill Whistler, 1855-1880, edited by Georgia Toutziari. Online edition, University of Glasgow, 2003-2004, GUW #03414.