Early Morning

1878

James McNeill Whistler

Associated Names
James McNeill Whistler

Artist, American, 1834 - 1903

The image shows a low and slightly elevated view over a body of water. The horizon is in the middle, with faint land and buildings in the distance. The structures on the horizon are blurred, with one spire and some vertical industrial shapes. The technique looks like light brushstrokes or pencil work, creating a soft texture. The color palette is monochromatic, mostly various shades of gray, giving a misty and serene feel. Two faintly sketched figures stand near the edge of the water.

Media Options

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Artwork overview

  • Medium

    lithotint in black on wove paper

  • Credit Line

    Rosenwald Collection

  • Dimensions

    image: 16.5 × 25.9 cm (6 1/2 × 10 3/16 in.)
    sheet: 18.2 × 27.1 cm (7 3/16 × 10 11/16 in.)

  • Accession Number

    1946.21.367

  • Catalogue Raisonné

    Stratis & Tedeschi 1998, no. 9, iii/iv

Artwork history & notes

Exhibition History

1951

  • Contemporary American Prints, Berlin, Germany, 1951-1952.

1971

  • An Impressionist View on Paper - from the Lessing Rosenwald Collection of the National Gallery, Washington, D.C, Art Gallery at the University of Notre Dame, 1971, no. 47.

Bibliography

1896

  • Way, Thomas Robert. Mr. Whistler's Lithographs: The Catalogue. London: G. Bell and Sons, 1896; New York: H. Wunderlich & Co., 1905, no. 7.

1998

  • Stratis, Harriet K., and Martha Tedeschi, eds. The Lithographs of James McNeill Whistler, vol. 1. Chicago: Art Institute of Chicago, 1998, pp. 66-71, no. 9, iii/iv.

Wikidata ID

Q65076655

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