The Paintings of James McNeill Whistler
M.1471
Westminster from the Savoy
Date
Westminster from the Savoy dates from early 1896. Whistler's wife Beatrice Philip (Mrs E. W. Godwin, Mrs J. McN. Whistler) (1857-1896) was dying of cancer, and they stayed from February through April at the Savoy Hotel before moving to Hampstead, where she died on 10 May.
Westminster from the Savoy, The Hunterian
It was catalogued in MacDonald 1995 (cat. rais.) [more] (cat. no. 1471).
Images
Westminster from the Savoy, The Hunterian
Savoy Pigeons, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Washington, DC
Subject
Site
Westminster from the Savoy, The Hunterian
Savoy Pigeons, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Washington, DC
The Thames, with Charing Cross Bridge and the Houses of Parliament, seen from the Savoy Hotel, London.
The view is that seen in the lithograph Savoy Pigeons c154 but with all extraneous details removed.
Technique
Technique
Westminster from the Savoy, The Hunterian
The murky look of a foggy London day was conveyed by layers of washes, and long brushstrokes, in body-colour. The white of the body-colour was not properly ground, and tiny specks can be seen.
Conservation History
The paper has a very slight horizontal grain. It was painted to the edge at the sides. It has been marked by the mount at top and bottom.
History
Provenance
- 1903: in Whistler's studio at his death and bequeathed to his sister-in-law and executrix, Rosalind Birnie Philip (1873-1958);
- 1935: given by Miss Birnie Philip to the University of Glasgow.
Exhibitions
- 1905: Œuvres de James McNeill Whistler, Palais de l'Ecole des Beaux-Arts, Paris, 1905 (cat. no. 101) as 'Westminster from the Savoy'.
By the terms of Miss Birnie Philip's gift, the painting 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. 1471) as 'Westminster from the Savoy'.
Catalogues 1855-1905
- Œuvres de James McNeill Whistler, Palais de l'Ecole des Beaux-Arts, Paris, 1905 (cat. no. 101) as 'Westminster from the Savoy'.
Catalogues 1906-Present
- Aquarellen, Pastels, Teekingen, Etsen, Lithographien en een Schilderij door James McNeill Whistler, Museum Boijmans van Beuningen, Rotterdam, 1906 (cat. no. 11) as 'Westminster from the Savoy'.
Websites
- The Hunterian website at http://collections.gla.ac.uk.