Steamboats off the Tower

1875

James McNeill Whistler

Associated Names
James McNeill Whistler

Artist, American, 1834 - 1903

The image shows an etching of a serene harbor scene. In the foreground, two figures sit in a rowboat. In the background, there are tall masted ships lined up, and other boats and buildings hinted at in the distance. The etching uses fine, flowing lines to depict the reflections in the water and the forms of the ships. The color scheme is monochromatic, with shades of black and gray on an off-white background, creating a light and airy atmosphere.

Media Options

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Artwork overview

  • Medium

    drypoint on laid paper

  • Credit Line

    Rosenwald Collection

  • Accession Number

    1943.3.8482

  • Catalogue Raisonné

    MacDonald 2012, no. 156, state ii/iv

Artwork history & notes

Provenance

(H. Wunderlich & Co., New York, stock nos. a 38970, 59640). Listed by E. G. Kennedy as owned by H. B. Livingston, 1910 . Lessing Julius Rosenwald [1891-1971], Philadelphia, (Lugt 1760b); gift to NGA, 1943.

Associated Names

Exhibition History

1931

  • Etchings, Lithographs, Original Drawings, and Autograph Letters by James A. McNeill Whistler, The Free Library of Philadelphia, 1931.

Bibliography

1910

  • Kennedy, Edward G. The Etched Work of Whistler. New York: Grolier Club, 1910, no. 149, ii/iii.

2012

  • MacDonald, Margaret F., Grischka Petri, Joanna Meacock.James McNeill Whistler: The Etchings, a catalogue raisonné. University of Glasgow on-line website at http://etchings.arts.gla.ac.uk. University of Glasgow, 2012: no. 156, state ii/iv.

Inscriptions

on plate: (butterfly); lower left on the verso: 20 (circled); title and Wedmore number at lower right on the verso; by later hands: [butterfly imp.] / K149 II of 3

Wikidata ID

Q65021899

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