The Paintings of James McNeill Whistler
M.0565
Design for a butterfly
Date
Design for a butterfly was designed for brooches to be worn at the opening of Mr Whistler's Exhibition, Flemish Gallery, 48 Pall Mall, London, 1874. The address on the fragement of paper suggests that the drawing was done at Speke Hall, home of Frederick Richards Leyland (1832-1892).
Design for a butterfly, British Museum
It is fully catalogued in MacDonald 1995 (cat. rais.) [more] (cat. no. 565).
Images
Design for a butterfly, British Museum
Subject
Description
Design for a butterfly, British Museum
A bold design based on Whistler's butterfly monogram, for silk brooches to be word at the opening of his exhibition.
Technique
Technique
Design for a butterfly, British Museum
See MacDonald 1995 (cat. rais.) [more] (cat. no. 565).
Conservation History
The sheet was put into an album.
History
Provenance
- 1874: probably given by the artist to William Cleverly Alexander (1840-1916), London, and put in an album;
- 1916: passed to their daughters Rachel Alexander (1875-1964) and Jean Ingelow Alexander (1877-1972);
- 1958: given to the British Museum.
Exhibitions
There is no record of an exhibition in Whistler's lifetime, although it was a design for decorative brooch to be worn at Mr Whistler's Exhibition, Flemish Gallery, 48 Pall Mall, London, 1874.
Bibliography
Catalogues Raisonnés
- MacDonald, Margaret F., James McNeill Whistler. Drawings, Pastels and Watercolours. A Catalogue Raisonné, New Haven and London, 1995 (cat. no. 565) as 'Design for a butterfly'.