The Little Balcony

1894

James McNeill Whistler

Associated Names
James McNeill Whistler

Artist, American, 1834 - 1903

The sketch shows a group of people on a balcony, approximately waist up, leaning or standing at the rail. The individuals appear relaxed, some looking outward and others engaged with each other. The sketch lacks detailed facial features or hairstyles. The individuals wear hats and hold umbrellas, hinting at the weather. Clothing is suggested through light shading and outlines with minimal detail. The background is plain and the setting appears elevated, like a theater or hotel balcony. Details are sparse due to the minimalist style. The focus is the gathering of individuals on the balcony.

Media Options

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Artwork overview

  • Medium

    lithograph in black on cream laid Japanese vellum paper

  • Credit Line

    Rosenwald Collection

  • Dimensions

    image: 20.1 × 15.7 cm (7 15/16 × 6 3/16 in.)
    sheet: 33.5 × 23.9 cm (13 3/16 × 9 7/16 in.)

  • Accession Number

    1943.3.8710

  • Catalogue Raisonné

    Stratis & Tedeschi 1998, no. 83

Artwork history & notes

Provenance

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

1896

  • Way, Thomas Robert. Mr. Whistler's Lithographs: The Catalogue. London: G. Bell and Sons, 1896; New York: H. Wunderlich & Co., 1905, no. 50.

1998

  • Stratis, Harriet K., and Martha Tedeschi, eds. The Lithographs of James McNeill Whistler, vol. 1. Chicago: Art Institute of Chicago, 1998, pp. 262-263, no. 83.

Wikidata ID

Q65022129

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