The Paintings of James McNeill Whistler

Date

Two butterflies were drawn for publication in Whistler 1890 [more].

Two butterflies, Freer Gallery of Art

The sheet is catalogued in MacDonald 1995 (cat. rais.) [more] (cat. no. 1248).

Images

Subject

Description

Two butterflies, Freer Gallery of Art

Two butterflies based on Whistler's monogram 'JW', with the addition of a barbed tail. They were designed for Whistler 1890 [more].

Technique

Composition

Two butterflies, Freer Gallery of Art

Designed for Whistler 1890 [more]. The tail of the top butterfly was originally much shorter, with a double loop like the butterfly below. It was used for p. 73, " 'Arry in the Grosvenor": a letter to Atlas, The World, 17 May 1882. The second butterfly was reproduced after alterations to the original design, where the tail was shorter. It was used for p. 112, "A Line from the Land's End" : a letter to Atlas, The World, 2 January1884. The butterfly was later used in the first proofs of Whistler 1899 (F)[more]. ¹

History

Provenance

• 1890: probably sent by Whistler to William Heinemann (1863-1920), London publisher.
• 1904: bought from Obach, London art dealers, by Charles Lang Freer (1856-1919), Detroit;
• 1919: bequeathed to the Freer Gallery of Art.

Further details are given in MacDonald 1995 (cat. rais.) [more] (cat. no. 1248).

Exhibitions

By the terms of Freer's will, this work cannot be lent to another venue.

Bibliography

Catalogues Raisonnés

• MacDonald, Margaret F., James McNeill Whistler. Drawings, Pastels and Watercolours. A Catalogue Raisonné, New Haven and London, 1995 (cat. no. 1248) as 'Two butterflies'.

Authored by Whistler

• Whistler, James McNeill, The Gentle Art of Making Enemies, London, 1890, repr. pp. 73, 112.

Catalogues 1906-Present

• Curry, David Park, James McNeill Whistler at the Freer Gallery of Art, New York and London, 1984, p. 284, pl. 292.

Websites

• Freer Gallery of Art website at https://asia.si.edu/object/F1904.451, as 'Two Butterflies'.