Little Smithfield

c. 1877

James McNeill Whistler

Associated Names
James McNeill Whistler

Artist, American, 1834 - 1903

The image shows a narrow alleyway with tall buildings in the background. The buildings fill up most of the frame, obscuring the horizon. The scene is depicted in a monochrome color palette of black and grey on sepia-toned paper. The fine, linear brushstrokes detail the textures of the buildings. Two figures are seated in the foreground, while in the distance, window grids and rooftops can be seen.

Media Options

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Artwork overview

  • Medium

    etching on laid paper

  • Credit Line

    Rosenwald Collection

  • Accession Number

    1943.3.8494

  • Catalogue Raisonné

    MacDonald 2012, no. 154, only state

Artwork history & notes

Provenance

Royal Library, Windsor, (crown symbol, pencil, Lugt 2921h). (H. Wunderlich & Co., New York, stock no. a 41978). Henry Harper Benedict [1844-1935], New York, (Lugt 2936). 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. 160.

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. 154 only state.

Inscriptions

in graphite at lower right on the recto: butterfly; possibly by Whistler at lower right on the recto: 5.

Watermarks

Bell (?)

Wikidata ID

Q65021911

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