The Paintings of James McNeill Whistler
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Beatrice Godwin in the studio
Date
Beatrice Godwin in the studio dates from 1886 or 1887. It is dated by the dress, the technique and the butterfly signature.
Images
Beatrice Godwin in the studio, Private Collection
Subject
Description
A woman standing, leaning forward, possibly resting on a stool. In her right hand she holds what may be a palette, a tray or plate. It is not entirely clear if she is painting or mixing paint or, indeed, cooking. Her dress has layers of pleats, with what appears to be an over-skirt gathered in at the waist. She wears a broad tippet over her shoulders, and a hat with a flat brim.
Sitter
The sitter looks like Beatrice Philip (Mrs E. W. Godwin, Mrs J. McN. Whistler) (1857-1896), then Mrs E. W. Godwin, who was posing to Whistler at this time and also studied and worked in his studio. It is, however, just possible that it is Maud Franklin (1857-1939), who was soon to part from Whistler as his chief model and partner.
Technique
Technique
A fine nibbed pen was used to draw with sharp, repeated outlines, shading and hatching. Some areas of shading were rubbed to produce richer effects.
History
Provenance
- 1891/1896: given by Whistler to the artist Howard Gardner Cushing (1869-1916);
- 1916: passed by family descent to his daughter Lily Delany Cushing (1909-1969) who married (1) G. C. Clark, Jr., (2) William Temple Emmet Jr., and (3) Alston Boyd, and who had two children, Lily Dulany Emmet (Mrs Anthony West) and Alexandra Temple Emmet (Mrs Arthur Meier Schlesinger Jr);
- 2004: sold to William Vareika Fine Arts Ltd., Newport, RI;
- 2004: bought by a private collector, UK.
Exhibitions
There is no record of an exhibition.
Bibliography
Catalogues Raisonnés
- None.