Portrait of James McNeill Whistler

Walter Greaves|James McNeill Whistler

ca. 1875 · Pen and ink, brush and wash, over graphite · Drawings and Prints

The wordly American painter James Abbot McNeill Whistler, sporting his characteristic monocle and garbed in a floppy hat, elegant overcoat and fancy shoes adorned with conspicuous bows, assumes something of the aspect of a dandy in this portrait by the British painter and draftsman Walter Greaves. What appears to be a walking stick proffered by the posturing artist may in fact be a mahlstick (a tool used by artists to work on a canvas without getting to close to its surface and smearing the paint). A one-time associate and collaborator, Greaves was later rebuffed by Whistler and died in poverty and oblivion. This portrait was made shortly before the rupture.

Artist

Walter Greaves|James McNeill Whistler

Date

ca. 1875

Medium

Pen and ink, brush and wash, over graphite

Department

Drawings and Prints

Credit line

Gift of Paul F. Walter, 1985