Bird-Cages, Drury Lane

c. 1886/1888

James McNeill Whistler

Associated Names
James McNeill Whistler

Artist, American, 1834 - 1903

This is a drawing of a darkened interior space with a figure holding a baby in front of a row of cages. The drawing depicts a sketched interior scene where a figure holds a smaller figure against a backdrop of a wall lined with cages. Above, a row of cages is visible, each containing abstract forms that could be animals or birds. The line work is loose and sketchy, giving an incomplete impression. The scene captures a moment of quiet and mystery, emphasized by heavy shadows and minimal detailing.

Media Options

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Artwork overview

  • Medium

    etching on laid paper

  • Credit Line

    Rosenwald Collection

  • Dimensions

    overall (trimmed to plate): 12.5 × 9.6 cm (4 15/16 × 3 3/4 in.)

  • Accession Number

    1943.3.8587

  • Catalogue Raisonné

    MacDonald 2012, no. 384, only state

Artwork history & notes

Provenance

(Knoedler & Co., New York). Purchased October 29, 1928 by Lessing Julius Rosenwald [1891-1971], Philadelphia, (Lugt 1760b); gift to National Gallery of Art, 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. 281.

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. 384, only state.

Inscriptions

on plate: (butterfly); on tab: (butterfly) imp; lower right on the verso, possibly by Whistler: Birdcages-; on verso lower right: Drury Lane

Watermarks

none

Wikidata ID

Q65022004

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