Object Details
Artist
James McNeill Whistler (1834-1903)
Sitter
James McNeill Whistler (1834-1903)
Label
As is frequently the case when a young artist creates a self-portrait, Whistler identified himself with a past master. Theodore Duret reported that Whistler was particularly struck by Rembrandt's Portrait of a Man in a Beret in the Louvre. Whistler adopted Rembrandt's general format as well as his rich, dark palette. The artist Kenyon Cox detected the impact of Courbet's realism in Whistler's use of "rather violent light and shade, with black shadows, the yellowish tone of the flesh, and the attempt at powerful modelling." The self-portrait exhibits a fastidious fashion consciousness: the artist is wearing a flat-brimmed brushed silk hat--the "Quartier Latin type," as one friend described it. By the time Freer acquired this self-portrait in 1906, it had been frequently exhibited in America and reproduced as both a woodcut and an engraving.
Provenance
Ernest Delannoy (died circa 1860-1870), France, given by the artist [1]
Henri Valentin (1820-1855), France, purchased at auction, Hôtel des Ventes, Paris, upon the death of Ernest Delannoy in 1870 [2]
From 1871 to 1906
Samuel Putnam Avery (1822-1904), New York, NY, purchased from Henri Valentin in 1871 [3]
From 1906 to 1919
Charles Lang Freer (1854-1919), purchased from Samuel P. Avery in March 1906 [4]
From 1920
Freer Gallery of Art, gift of Charles Lang Freer in 1920 [5]
Notes:
[1] According to Albert Eugene Gallatin's Portraits of Whistler: a Critical Study and Iconography, this painting was "[p]resented by Whistler to Ernest Delannoy. Bought by Samuel P. Avery from Henri Valentin in 1871. Bought by Charles L. Freer from Samuel P. Avery" (see Albert Eugene Gallatin, Portraits of Whistler: a Critical Study and Iconography [New York and London: John Lane Company, 1918], pgs. 47-48). According to the National Portrait Gallery's Catalogue of Later Victorian Portraits, Henri Valentin purchased the painting at an auction held at Hôtel des Ventes, following the death of Ernest Delannoy (see http://www.npg.org.uk/collections/search/personExtended/mp04794/james-abbott-mcneill-whistler?tab=iconography). See also, Curatorial Remark 2, Susan Hobbs, 1978, in the object record.
[2] See note 1.
[3] See note 1. See also, Original Whistler List, pg. 15B, Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery Archives.
[4] See note 3.
[5] The original deed of Charles Lang Freer's gift was signed in 1906. The collection was received in 1920 upon the completion of the Freer Gallery.
Collection
Freer Gallery of Art Collection
Exhibition History
Mr. Whistler's Galleries: Avant-garde in Victorian London, 1883 (November 20, 2003 to April 4, 2004)
Picturing Whistler: Portraits and Self-Portraits (May 21 to December 3, 2000)
American Art - James McNeill Whistler (May 9, 1993 to June 30, 1997)
Arrangement in Yellow and Gold: Paintings by James McNeill Whistler (March 14, 1986 to April 1, 1987)
American Paintings: James McNeill Whistler (January 17, 1985 to (end date unknown))
James McNeill Whistler at the Freer Gallery of Art (May 11, 1984 to December 5, 1984)
American Paintings: James McNeill Whistler 1834-1903 (September 16, 1981 to March 26, 1984)
American Paintings: James McNeill Whistler (November 11, 1976 to March 18, 1981)
Paintings by James McNeill Whistler (August 1, 1974 to December 5, 1975)
Portraits and Figure Painting by James McNeill Whistler (October 2, 1972 to May 2, 1973)
Whistler—Landscapes and Seascapes (October 14, 1969 to September 25, 1971)
Whistler Paintings (September 8, 1961 to October 15, 1969)
American Paintings (September 8, 1961 to May 2, 1973)
American Paintings (June 9, 1960 to September 8, 1961)
Centennial Exhibition, Galleries 10 and 11 (February 25, 1956 to November 3, 1959)
Untitled Exhibition, Whistler Oil Paintings, Gallery 3, 1955 (December 16, 1955 to February 25, 1956)
Untitled Exhibition, American Oil Paintings, Gallery 3, 1947 (September 25, 1947 to April 12, 1955)
Untitled Exhibition, Works of Whistler (September 22, 1947 to April 11, 1955)
Untitled Exhibition, Whistler Oil Paintings (February 12, 1944 to May 10, 1945)
Untitled Exhibition, Whistler Watercolors, Oil Paintings, and Pastels (January 20, 1944 to October 13, 1947)
American Paintings by Dewing, Sargeant, Homer, Tryon, Brush, Melchers and Whistler (March 23, 1925 to May 5, 1933)
American Paintings, J.A.McN. Whistler (May 2, 1923 to February 12, 1944)
Portraits of Whistler and other Whistleriana (1918)
James McNeill Whistler (April 09, 1915 to April 27, 1915)
Previous custodian or owner
Ernest Delannoy (died ca. 1860 -1870)
Henri Valentin (1820-1855)
Samuel Putnam Avery (1822-1904) (C.L. Freer source)
Charles Lang Freer (1854-1919)
Credit Line
Gift of Charles Lang Freer
Date
1857-1859
Accession Number
F1906.57a-b
Restrictions & Rights
CC0
Type
Painting
Medium
Oil on canvas
Dimensions
H x W: 46.3 x 38.1 cm (18 1/4 x 15 in)
Origin
United States
Related Online Resources
Google Arts & Culture
See more items in
National Museum of Asian Art
Data Source
National Museum of Asian Art
Topic
self portrait
United States
American Art
Charles Lang Freer collection
Link to Original Record
Record ID
fsg_F1906.57a-b