La Mère Gérard

1858

James McNeill Whistler

Associated Names
James McNeill Whistler

Artist, American, 1834 - 1903

The image shows a standing figure in full body. The person is slightly turned to the side, with their left arm hanging at their side and the right arm holding fabric or a garment. The facial features are partially obscured by shading, with curly hair peeking from under a cap or bonnet. The attire consists of a long-sleeved shirt, a short dark cape or shawl, a long skirt, and cloth shoes. The background is lightly sketched to suggest a wall or texture, with shadows to the right of the figure. The lower part of the sketch includes the artist's inscription and other annotations.

Media Options

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Artwork overview

  • Medium

    etching in black on laid paper

  • Credit Line

    Corcoran Collection (Bequest of James Parmelee)

  • Dimensions

    plate: 12.7 × 8.89 cm (5 × 3 1/2 in.)
    sheet: 21.27 × 13.65 cm (8 3/8 × 5 3/8 in.)

  • Accession Number

    2015.19.514

  • Catalogue Raisonné

    MacDonald 2012, no. 24, state iv/iv

  • Series Title

    Twelve Etchings from Nature

Artwork history & notes

Provenance

James Parmelee, Washington, DC; Corcoran Gallery of Art, Washington, DC, 1941; acquired 2015 by the National Gallery of Art

Associated Names

Exhibition History

1982

  • Whistler’s World: The Master’s Etchings, Corcoran Gallery of Art, Washington, DC, 1982, no. 2

1990

  • Haden, Whistler, Pennell: Three Master Printmakers in the Corcoran Gallery of Art, Corcoran Gallery of Art, Washington, DC, 1990, no. 2, repro

Bibliography

1910

  • Kennedy, Edward G. The Etched Work of Whistler. New York: Grolier Club, 1910, no. 11.

2012

  • MacDonald, Margaret, Grischka Petri, Meg Hausberg, and Joanna Meacock. James McNeill Whistler: The Etchings, A Catalogue Raisonné. Scotland: University of Glasgow, 2012, no. 24, iv/iv. http://etchings.arts.gla.ac.uk

Inscriptions

lower left in plate: Whistler; lower center in plate: Imp. Delâtre, Rue St. Jacques. 171.; lower center edge in graphite by unknown hand: Mère Gérard

Wikidata ID

Q77013533

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