The Paintings of James McNeill Whistler

Date

Rose et or: La Tulipe may have been started in 1892 and was probably worked on until at least 1896. ¹

1892/1893: The model, Whistler's sister-in-law Ethel Philip – later Ethel Whibley (1861-1920) – was free to pose at that time.

Rose et or: La Tulipe, The Hunterian

Modèles de Mme Moslard, 96, rue Saint-Lazare, La mode pratique, no. 39, 3e année, 1894, Glasgow University Library

1892/1894: The costume, with its wide puffed sleeves, narrow waist, and comparatively narrow 'tulip shaped' skirt with trailing hem, suggests a date of 1892/1894. Whistler (or his wife) owned the fashion plate reproduced above, dating from 1894, which could have inspired some features in the dress, particularly the shape of the sleeves, and soft pink colouring. ²

1894: Although it was included in the catalogue of the Exposition Nationale des Beaux-Arts, Société Nationale des Beaux-Arts, Champ de Mars, Paris, 1894 (cat. no. 1184) as 'Rose et rouge; – la Tulipe', Whistler told Robert de Montesquiou-Fezensac (1855-1921) that he did not send 'Tulipe Rose' to the exhibition because it was unfinished,

'... est venu un ultimatum du Champs [sic] de Mars - exigeant immédiatement toutes les toiles! - Il est donc parti - le Chevalier Noir! - avec les autres - hors la pauvre Tulipe Rose! - qui n'a pas fini sa toilette.' ³

(Translated:) '... an ultimatum came from the Champ de Mars - demanding all the paintings immediately! - Therefore the Black Cavalier has gone! - with the others - except the poor Pink Tulip - who has not finished her toilette.'

Edward Guthrie Kennedy (1849-1932) of Wunderlich's, New York art dealers, mentioned portraits of Ethel Whibley (1861-1920) seen in Whistler's London studio, and suitable for exhibition, including 'the portrait in pink silk of Miss Phillips.' [sic] ⁴

When Joseph Pennell (1860-1926) was in Paris, around October 1894, he recorded Mother of Pearl and Silver: The Andalusian as one of three full-lengths Whistler was painting at 110 rue du Bac. ⁵

1896: In July 1896 E. G. Kennedy noted that there were three full-lengths in Whistler's Fitzroy Street studio, 'one in black, one in grey & black & one in pink', which Kennedy was to have when 'the hands' were completed. Shortly after the death of Whistler's wife, Beatrice Philip (Mrs E. W. Godwin, Mrs J. McN. Whistler) (1857-1896), Kennedy was horrified to find Whistler repainting the 'full length in pink':

'One afternoon I went to the studio in Fitzroy St & saw ... Mrs Whibley [posing] for the full length in pink, but Whistler, instead of finishing the hand only, had repainted the picture from top to bottom & the beautiful tone had, of course, disappeared. In my astonishment I said - "Good Lord you've spoiled my picture". This was impulse, & of course the moment I said it, I saw of what a piece of foolishness & bad taste I was guilty & did not go into the Studio, but went away after lamely apologising, & afterward I wrote him a letter. He was certainly much more tolerant than I had reason to expect & he was as friendly as ever.' ⁶

Kennedy, writing years later, clearly thought that Whistler had spoilt the 'pink picture' but in Whistler's immediate response in 1896, he refers to it as 'the red picture':

'Now my dear OK about the red picture - Don't let that weigh on your mind any longer -

You have too loudly expressed your views for me to remain in any uncertainty about what I ought to do -

I therefore release you from all further entanglement in that unfortunate work - Nothing on earth would persuade me to thrust upon you a picture which is already quite other than the one for which you bargained.

The grievous disappointment you felt when you saw it the other day I shall not forget - It was so great that you could not help calling out that it was a shame I had "spoiled" the beautiful work - I can only be sorry -

Your outcry was an awful shock to my already over wrought nerves - and I must get over it as best I can -

Never let us say any more about it - It would pain me too much -

Don't misunderstand me O K - that picture is now scratched off the list in our arrangements - "Spoiled" as it is, it would be unlike Whistler to insist upon your taking it - and were it by a miracle to turn out a masterpiece it would be immoral to let you have it.' ⁷

Red and Black: The Fan, The Hunterian

Rose et or: La Tulipe, The Hunterian

Confusion arises because this altercation could possibly refer to Red and Black: The Fan y388. Both this and Rose et or: La Tulipe y418 were never completely 'finished' but remained in Whistler's studio.

Images

Subject

Titles

The recorded titles vary a lot in colour, and it is not always clear to which picture they refer:

• 'Rose et rouge; – la Tulipe' (1894, Société Nationale des Beaux-Arts). ⁸
• 'portrait in pink silk of Miss Phillips' [sic] (1894, E. G. Kennedy). ⁹
• 'the Girl in pink' (1894, E. G. Kennedy). ¹⁰
• Possibly 'the red picture' (1896, Whistler). ¹¹
• Possibly 'the Red Bunnie' (1897, Whistler). ¹²
• 'Rose et Or: La Tulipe (unfinished)' (1904, ISSPG). ¹³
• 'Rose et or. La Tulipe. – (Rose and Gold. The Tulip).' (1905, Palais de l'Ecole des Beaux-Arts, Paris). ¹⁴
• 'Rose et Or – La Tulipe (Portrait of Miss Ethel Birnie Philip) (1936, University of Glasgow). ¹⁵
• 'Rose et or: La Tulipe' (1980, YMSM). ¹⁶

Since Whistler apparently had intended to exhibit this portrait with the Société Nationale in 1894 as 'Rose et rouge' (pink and red) it is possible that originally there was more red in the picture (the ribbon round her neck is still deep pink touched with coral red). Thus it is possible that references to a painting called 'the red lady' and 'the red Bunnie' (Whistler's nickname for Ethel was 'Bunnie') refer to Rose et or: La Tulipe, rather then to Red and Black: The Fan y388, which was being painted around the same time.

The 'Tulipe' of the title may refer to the texture, colour and shape of the skirt or be a reflection of current Paris fashions. Whistler, Women and Fashion commented:

'The title suggests a Whistlerian combination of fashion and symbolism, equating a woman with a flower, in a dress of silky sheen with curling petal-like sleeves ... The dress may have been fresh from the dressmaker, and called Le Tulipe.' ¹⁷

'Rose et or: La Tulipe' is the generally accepted title. The Hunterian website commented:

'The title may be translated as 'Pink and Gold: The Tulip'. It was a fashionable conceit of the day to liken women to flowers, though it is possible the title refers to a style of dress. The sitter, Ethel Philip, is shown from behind, with her face in profile, an elegant pose which reinforces the possible reference to the graceful flower.' ¹⁸

Description

Rose et or: La Tulipe, The Hunterian

A full-length portrait of a woman seen from behind, with her face in profile to right, in vertical format. Her hands are clasped behind her back. She wears a pale pink low-necked evening dress with darker pink and coral/salmon colour ribbons around her neck. Her waistband and puffed elbow-length sleeves are also a darker pink. The dress is fitted to the waist, with the long skirt forming a fairly narrow 'tulip' shape, spreading out round her feet. Her hair is very dark, pinned up in a bun, with a short fringe and a curl in front of her ear. She may be holding a pale pink bouquet or gloves in her hands but this area is not clear. The background is a warm dark brown.

Sitter

W. & D. Downey, Ethel Whibley reclining in a chair, 1895/1903, platinum print, GUL Whistler PH1/51, 2491

This is one of a number of portraits of Whistler's sister-in-law, Ethel Philip, later Ethel Whibley (1861-1920). It was painted before her marriage to Charles Whibley (1859-1930).

Modèles de Mme Moslard, 96, rue Saint-Lazare, La mode pratique, no. 39, 3e année, 1894, GUL WPP

Whistler took a close interest in women's dress, and the clothes worn by Ethel in his portraits follow the latest fashions. As she did not have a large income, they were probably copies of couture outfits, inspired by magazine illustrations (such as the one reproduced above) and made up by a dressmaker. ¹⁹

Technique

Composition

Rose et or: La Tulipe, The Hunterian

Symphony in Flesh Colour and Pink: Portrait of Mrs Frances Leyland, The Frick Collection

The pose of the woman, seen from the back with her head in profile and hands clasped behind her, is similar to that of Frances Leyland (1834-1910) in Symphony in Flesh Colour and Pink: Portrait of Mrs Frances Leyland y106, but in reverse. However, the effect is completely different because of the changes in dress-shape and detail, from the artistic design of the 1870s to the extreme silhouette of the early 1890s. ²⁰ Furthermore the pastel shades of the aesthetic interior behind Mrs Leyland's pale pink dress change in Rose et or: La Tulipe to a dramatic contrast between the pink and rose of the dress and the rich reddish brown of the dark background.

Technique

The canvas is of a coarse, fairly open weave. It has been lined with a tightly woven plain tabby canvas. ²¹ Whistler worked on this portrait in Paris, as well as in the Fitzroy Street studio in London. Despite the frequent reworkings of the subject, the brushwork appears fresh, bold and vigorous.

In July 1896 E. G. Kennedy visited Whistler's Fitzroy Street studio and was horrified to find Whistler repainting a portrait of Ethel Whibley:

'... Whistler, instead of finishing the hand only, had repainted the picture from top to bottom & the beautiful tone had, of course, disappeared. In my astonishment I said - "Good Lord you've spoiled my picture".' ²²

Red and Black: The Fan, The Hunterian

Rose et or: La Tulipe, The Hunterian

Although this probably refers to Rose et or: La Tulipe, it could have applied to Red and Black: The Fan y388. Both were never completely 'finished' but remained in Whistler's studio.

Rose et or: La Tulipe, The Hunterian, detail

However, references to this 'spoiled' picture as 'red' (by Whistler) and 'pink' (by Kennedy), could have applied to the earlier appearance of Rose et or: La Tulipe, since it was briefly entitled 'Rose et rouge; – la Tulipe' in 1894. ²³ Originally the coral-red visible at the neck and shoulders may have been more dominant. The skirt is still outlined in red at the hem but the dress is painted very freely in several shades of dull pink.

The painting is not highly finished. The matt pink of Mrs Whibley's ears and the blurred painting of the fringe is probably intentional, and certainly attractive, but her left arm is rather disjointed and the hands have been rubbed down.

Conservation History

Rose et or: La Tulipe, silver gelatin print, Henry Dixon, London, 1894/1904, GUL Whistler PH4/49

Rose et or: La Tulipe, The Hunterian

An early photograph shows few alterations except that the picture may have darkened.

There is a water stain on the verso, at lower right. There are minor abrasions at the edges, from the frame. There is some craquelure, and drying cracks either side of the waist and on her left shoulder. It is thinly and slightly unevenly varnished, with some 'blooming' on the dark reddish brown background. However, the paint layers and support are in a generally stable and sound condition. ²⁴

Frame

Rose et or: La Tulipe, framed, The Hunterian

Rose et or: La Tulipe, frame detail

Convex Portrait Whistler with liner, 206 x 104 cm. Whistler probably started this picture in Paris, or worked on it there for some time. The frame bears the label of Andre Chenue (fl. 1890s), packers and shipping agents, 5 rue de la Terrasse, Paris. ²⁵

History

Provenance

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

There is some confusion over the history of this painting and Red and Black: The Fan y388, caused by the variation in titles used by Whistler and others.

It is difficult to be absolutely sure which of the portraits of Ethel Philip (Mrs Whibley) was the one that E. G. Kennedy saw Whistler repainting in the Fitzroy Street studio, shortly after the death of Beatrice Philip (Mrs E. W. Godwin, Mrs J. McN. Whistler) (1857-1896), as described in a series of letters and notes. Kennedy noted: 'Whistler ... had repainted the picture ... In my astonishment I said - "Good Lord you've spoiled my picture".' Kennedy then apologised and left the studio, and Whistler wrote to him, describing the 'spoiled' painting as the 'red picture': 'I ... release you from all further entanglement in that unfortunate work ... were it by a miracle to turn out a masterpiece it would be immoral to let you have it.' ²⁶ The 'full length in pink' or indeed 'red' was never sold.

In November 1897 Kennedy recorded: 'Pictures (paintings) bought by E. G. Kennedy, from J. McN. Whistler, at different times & not yet received. / 4 full length portraits of a lady (Mrs. Whibley)'. ²⁷ This portrait, Rose et or: La Tulipe, remained in Whistler's studio, and was inherited by the younger sister of the sitter, Rosalind Birnie Philip (1873-1958), who gave it to the University of Glasgow.

Exhibitions

• 1894: Catalogued but not exhibited at Exposition Nationale des Beaux-Arts, Société Nationale des Beaux-Arts, Champ de Mars, Paris, 1894 (cat. no. 1184) as 'Rose et rouge; – la Tulipe'.
• 1904: Fourth Exhibition, International Society of Sculptors, Painters and Gravers, Regent Street, London, 1904 (cat. no. 153) as 'Rose et Or: La Tulipe (unfinished)'.
• 1905: Œuvres de James McNeill Whistler, Palais de l'Ecole des Beaux-Arts, Paris, 1905 (cat. no. 24) as 'Rose et or. La Tulipe. – (Rose and Gold. The Tulip).'

Rose et or: La Tulipe, silver gelatin print, Henry Dixon, London, 1894/1904, GUL Whistler PH4/49

This photograph may have been taken when Rose et or: La Tulipe was considered ready for exhibition, either for Whistler or for his ward and executrix, Miss R. Birnie Philip. However, although Whistler had apparently intended to send it to the Champ de Mars in 1894, and it was included in the catalogue, in the end it was not sent because, as he told Robert de Montesquiou-Fezensac (1855-1921) , 'la pauvre Tulipe Rose! ... n'a pas fini sa toilette' (that is, it was not quite finished). ²⁸

Rose et or: La Tulipe, The Hunterian, detail

In the catalogue of the Exposition Nationale des Beaux-Arts in 1894 (cat. no. 1184) it was given the title 'Rose et rouge; – la Tulipe'. The 'rouge' (red) in the proposed title may mean that the painting was more red at that time – an orangey red that is now only visible in the outlines of the skirt and around the neck, as seen in the detail above. On the other hand it might have referred to the reddish brown of the background.

At the same time, in May 1894, E. G. Kennedy of Wunderlich's was pressing for a one-man exhibition of Whistler's work in America, and wrote:

'Also, let me call your attention once more to the fact that you have a lot of pictures in Hamburg, Antwerp, Munich & goodness knows where else. Now, why not get up that exhibition for America, where things can be sold? Also why not send the portrait in pink silk of Miss Phillips there, as it is brighter in colours than most of the others and would prove attractive I'm sure.' ²⁹

It was not exhibited in Whistler's lifetime, but it was shown immediately after his death, both in London, by the International Society of Sculptors, Painters and Gravers, in 1904, and in Paris, in the Whistler Memorial Exhibition of 1905. In 1904 one reviewer praised it highly, describing it in some detail:

' "Rose et Or: la Tulipe” is its title, and it is described in the catalogue as "unfinished." But though much remained for Whistler to do had he lived (the arms are just brushed in, the hands not more than suggested), it is complete in its color harmony and its design. It is a large, full-length portrait of a tall, graceful woman in long, rose-coloured draperies, standing against a background of rose-purple. The hands are clasped behind her – the grace of the attitude is already in the suggestion – her face is in profile, and the pose has all the elegance and distinction, the color all the subtlety, of which Whistler was the master. In fact, the picture as it is has such charm that one almost wonders whether it needed "finishing." ' ³⁰

By the terms of Miss R. Birnie Philip's gift to the University of Glasgow, it can not be lent to any other venue.

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. 418), plate 217, as 'Rose et or: La Tulipe'.

Authored by Whistler

• None.

Catalogues 1855-1905

• Catalogued but not exhibited at Exposition Nationale des Beaux-Arts, Société Nationale des Beaux-Arts, Champ de Mars, Paris, 1894 (cat. no. 1184) as 'Rose et rouge; – la Tulipe'.
• Fourth Exhibition, International Society of Sculptors, Painters and Gravers, Regent Street, London, 1904 (cat. no. 153) as 'Rose et Or: La Tulipe (unfinished)'.
• Œuvres de James McNeill Whistler, Palais de l'Ecole des Beaux-Arts, Paris, 1905 (cat. no. 24) as 'Rose et or. La Tulipe. – (Rose and Gold. The Tulip).'

Journals 1855-1905

• Richards, J. H., 'The "International" Exhibition', Nation, vol. 78, no. 2014, 1904, pp. 86-87
• Bénédite, Léonce, L'Oeuvre de James MacNeill Whistler, Paris, 1905, repr. pl. 22.

Monographs

• None.

Books on Whistler

• Gallatin, Albert Eugene, Portraits of Whistler: A Critical Study and an Iconography, New York and London, 1918, p. 9.
• MacDonald, Margaret F., Susan Galassi, Aileen Ribeiro, and Patricia de Montfort, Whistler, Women and Fashion, New Haven and London, 2003, pp. 17, 41, 193, 204-06, fig. 205.
• Ribeiro. Aileen, 'Fashion and Whistler' in MacDonald, Margaret F., Susan Galassi, Aileen Ribeiro, and Patricia de Montfort, Whistler, Women and Fashion, New Haven and London, 2003, pp. 16-51.
• Munhall, Edgar, Whistler and Montesquiou. The Butterfly and the Bat, New York, 1995, p. 84.
• Pennell, Elizabeth Robins, and Joseph Pennell, The Life of James McNeill Whistler, 2 vols, London and Philadelphia, 1908, vol. 2, p. 158.
• Pennell, Elizabeth Robins, and Joseph Pennell, The Life of James McNeill Whistler, 5th (revised) edition, London and Philadelphia, 1911, pp. 322, 372-73.
• Sutton, Denys, Nocturne: The Art of James McNeill Whistler, London, 1963, p. 150.

Books, General

• Kelly, Franklin, American Paintings of the Nineteenth Century, Vol. 2, National Gallery of Art, Washington DC, 1998, pp. 249-50.
• McConkey, Kenneth, Sir John Lavery, The Fine Art Society Ltd, Edinburgh, 1984, pp. 44-45, fig. 8.
• McConkey, Kenneth, Edwardian Portraits: Images of an Age of Opulence, Antique Collector's Club Ltd, Woodbridge, 1987, p. 136.

Catalogues 1906-Present

COLLECTION:

• Hopkinson, Martin J., James McNeill Whistler at the Hunterian Art Gallery, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, 1990, p. 36.

EXHIBITION:

• James McNeill Whistler, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, 1936 (cat. no. 20).
• Dorment, Richard, and Margaret F. MacDonald, James McNeill Whistler, Tate Gallery, London, Musée d’Orsay, Paris, and National Gallery of Art, Washington, DC, 1994-1995, p. 276 (not exhibited).
• Gray, Anne, and Ann Galbally, The Edwardians: secrets and desires, National Gallery of Australia, Art Gallery of South Australia, 2004, p. 240 (not exhibited).
• Merrill, Linda, After Whistler: The Artist and His Influence on American Painting, High Museum of Art, Atlanta, Detroit Institute of Arts, 2014, p. 247 note 63 (not exhibited).

Journals 1906-Present

• Newton, Joy, La Chauve-Souris et le Papillon. Correspondance Montesquiou-Whistler, Glasgow, 1990, pp. 221, 223 note 2.
• Thorp, Nigel, 'Studies in Black and White: Whistler’s Photographs in Glasgow University Library', in: Ruth Fine (ed.), James McNeill Whistler: A Reexamination, Studies in the History of Art, vol. 19, Washington, DC, 1987, pp. 85-100, at p. 87.

Websites

• The Hunterian website at http://collections.gla.ac.uk/#/details/ecatalogue/41056.
• Art UK website at https://artuk.org.

Unpublished

• Revillon, Joseph Whistler, Draft Catalogue Raisonné of the Paintings of J. McN. Whistler, [ca 1945-1955], Glasgow University Library (cat. no. 204).

Other

• Parkerson, Sarah Lawrence, Variations in Gold: The Stylistic Development of the Picture Frames used by James McNeill Whistlers, PhD thesis, University of Glasgow, 2007.