The Paintings of James McNeill Whistler
YMSM 257
Caprice in Red
Date
Caprice in Red is assumed to date from 1883 or 1884. 1
It was first exhibited in 'Notes' - 'Harmonies' - 'Nocturnes', Messrs Dowdeswell, London, 1884 (cat. no. 64).
Images
Caprice in Red, Whereabouts unknown
Subject
Titles
Only one title has been suggested:
- 'Caprice in Red' (1884, Dowdeswell). 2
- 'Caprice in Red' (1980, YMSM). 3
The press, perhaps not surprisingly, commented on Whistler's 'great capacity for inventing strange titles for his eccentric productions' including 'Caprice in Red'. 4
Description
Unknown. It is likely that it was a figure study.
Another Caprice in Red m1067 was a watercolour, but like this oil it has not been identified. Milly Finch m0907 would be a strong candidate for such a 'caprice in red'.
Sitter
Unknown.
Technique
Technique
Unknown.
Conservation History
Unknown.
Frame
Unknown.
History
Provenance
- Unknown.
Exhibitions
- 1884: 'Notes' - 'Harmonies' - 'Nocturnes', Messrs Dowdeswell, London, 1884 (cat. no. 64) as 'Caprice in red'.
- 1884: Annual Exhibition of Sketches, Pictures & Photography: A Loan Collection of Pictures by Mr Whistler ..., Dublin Sketching Club, Dublin, 1884 (cat. no. 249) as 'Caprice in red'.
The title attracted notice, and unflattering criticism, at Dowdeswell's in 1884. Fun, for instance, commented on Whistler's 'great capacity for inventing strange titles for his eccentric productions' including 'Caprice in Red', and an unidentified reviewer commented that the subject 'must be left to the intelligence of the amateur'. 5
In 1884 the painting joined a large group of works exhibited in Dublin. The Dublin Daily Express defended Whistler against criticism:
'On the small drawings - caprices, nocturnes, notes in pink and red - the critical wrath of the uneducated and inexperienced waxed hot, and such complimentary remarks as "rubbish", "daubs", "unfinished", "has to be looked at from a long way off", were as plentiful as blackberries, but as time passed on and the real skill and genius of the painter were pointed out ... . the ferocity abated and a more generous and rational estimate was taken. The fact is Mr. Whistler sees nature in his own way.' 6
Bibliography
Catalogues Raisonnés
- Young, Andrew McLaren, Margaret F. MacDonald, Robin Spencer, and Hamish Miles, The Paintings of James McNeill Whistler, New Haven and London, 1980 (cat. no. 257) as 'Caprice in Red'.
Authored by Whistler
- None.
Catalogues 1855-1905
- 'Notes' - 'Harmonies' - 'Nocturnes', Messrs Dowdeswell, London, 1884 (cat. no. 64) as 'Caprice in red'.
- Annual Exhibition of Sketches, Pictures & Photography: A Loan Collection of Pictures by Mr Whistler ..., Dublin Sketching Club, Dublin, 1884 (cat. no. 249) as 'Caprice in red'.
Newspapers 1855-1905
- Anon., 'Mr. Whistler's Exhibition', Globe, London, 20 May 1884, p. 6.
- Anon., 'Mr. Whistler's Gallery', The Daily News, London, 21 May 1884, p. 7.
- 'The Private View at the Dublin Sketching Club', Dublin Daily Express, Dublin, 1 December 1884, p. 5.
Journals 1855-1905
- 'Whistler's "Notes," "Harmonies," "Nocturnes," etc. in Bond Street', Fun, 4 June 1884.
Monographs
- None.
Books on Whistler
- None.
Books, General
- None.
Catalogues 1906-Present
- None.
Journals 1906-Present
- 'The Private View at the Dublin Sketching Club', Dublin Daily Express, Dublin, 1 December 1884, p. 5. Quoted in Anderson, Ronald, 'Whistler in Dublin, 1884', Irish Arts Review (1984-1987), Autumn, 1986, vol. 3, no. 3 (Autumn, 1986), pp. 45-51 , at p. 48.
Websites
- None.
Unpublished
- None.
Other
- None.
Notes:
1: YMSM 1980 [more] (cat. no. 257).
2: 'Notes' - 'Harmonies' - 'Nocturnes', Messrs Dowdeswell, London, 1884 (cat. no. 64).
3: YMSM 1980 [more] (cat. no. 257).
4: 'Whistler's "Notes," "Harmonies," "Nocturnes," etc. in Bond Street', Fun, 4 June 1884; press cuttings in GUL Whistler PC 6. See also an undated press cuttings labelled 'Globe', [25? May 1884], GUL Whistler PC7, p. 11.
5: 'Whistler's "Notes," "Harmonies," "Nocturnes," etc. in Bond Street', Fun, 4 June 1884; press cuttings in GUL Whistler PC 6 and in PC7 p. 16.
6: 'The Private View at the Dublin Sketching Club', Dublin Daily Express, Dublin, 1 December 1884, p. 5. Quoted in Anderson, Ronald, 'Whistler in Dublin, 1884', Irish Arts Review (1984-1987), Autumn, 1986, vol. 3, no. 3 (Autumn, 1986), pp. 45-51 , at p. 48.