Detail from The Canal, Amsterdam, 1889, James McNeill Whistler, The Hunterian, University of Glasgow

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Portrait of Charles L. Freer

Technique

Portrait of Charles L. Freer, Freer Gallery of Art
Portrait of Charles L. Freer, Freer Gallery of Art

It is thinly painted on a grey ground. The features are outlined in orange, which shows through the beard and surface modelling. The face has been painted tentatively with small brushes, the dark khaki background painted more broadly with criss-crossing strokes. The jacket is a rich reddish-brown, painted rather dryly, and left unfinished.

Shortly before Whistler's death, Freer suggested more sittings, but it was too late: the painting was never completed. 1

Conservation History

It was cleaned and 'resurfaced' several times between 1922 and 1951. In 1965 Ben Johnson commented that the varnish was thick and retouching around the head had darkened; accordingly the portrait was cleaned and losses infilled, and it was retouched and revarnished. In 1970 a small scratch on the nose was repaired. 2

Frame

Charles L. Freer, with frame, Freer Gallery of Art
Charles L. Freer, with frame, Freer Gallery of Art

An American-made Grau-style frame dating from ca 1905. 3 The frame was re-gilded in 1960 and repaired in 1965.

Notes:

1: Whistler to Freer, memo., 30 March 1903, GUW #13799.

2: Freer Gallery Conservation records.

3: Dr S. L. Parkerson Day, Report on frames, 2017. See also Parkerson 2007 [more].

Last updated: 13th December 2020 by Margaret