The Paintings of James McNeill Whistler

M.0456
A lady reading a letter

Artist: James McNeill Whistler
Date: 1872/1878
Collection: Whereabouts Unknown
Accession Number: none
Medium: chalk and pencil
Support: buff paper
Size: 9 5/8 x 5 1/8" (245 x 130 mm)
Signature: none
Inscription: v.: 'Whistler' and '1894' (or '1874') in unknown hands

Date

A lady reading a letter dates from 1872/1878.

A lady reading a letter, whereabouts unknown

The drawing is catalogued in MacDonald 1995 (cat. rais.) [more] (cat. no. 456).

Images

A lady reading a letter, photograph, 1972

Subject

Sitter

The model has not been identified.

Technique

Composition

A lady reading a letter, photograph, 1972

MacDonald 1995 (cat. rais.) [more] (cat. no. 456).

History

Provenance

1972: sold at auction, Sotheby, London, 22 November 1972 (lot 6) as 'A Lady Reading a Letter'.

Neither the early nor recent provenance are known.

Exhibitions

It was not, as far as is known, exhibited in Whistler's lifetime.

Bibliography

Catalogues Raisonnés

MacDonald, Margaret F., James McNeill Whistler. Drawings, Pastels and Watercolours. A Catalogue Raisonné, New Haven and London, 1995 (cat. no. 456) as 'A lady reading a letter'.

Catalogues 1906-Present

SALE:

Sotheby, London, 22 November 1972 (lot 6) as 'A Lady Reading a Letter'.