The Music Room

Sir Francis Seymour Haden|Deborah Delano Haden|James Reeves Traer|James McNeill Whistler

1859 · Etching and drypoint, printed in black ink on medium weight cream laid paper; first state of four (Glasgow) · Drawings and Prints

Whistler moved to London from Paris lin 1859. After publishing the "French Set" the previous November he continued to use etching to explore new visual effects. Here, a lamp-lit interior is occupied by his half-sister Deborah, brother-in-law Seymour Haden at left, and Haden's medical partner James Traer, all shown reading. They are in the Haden home on 62 Sloane Street in Chelsea. Comparing this first state of the etching to the second (MMA 17.3.26) demonstrates how Whistler began with forms almost swallowed by darkness, then lightened the overall effect.

Artist

Sir Francis Seymour Haden|Deborah Delano Haden|James Reeves Traer|James McNeill Whistler

Date

1859

Medium

Etching and drypoint, printed in black ink on medium weight cream laid paper; first state of four (Glasgow)

Department

Drawings and Prints

Credit line

Gift of William Loring Andrews, 1883, transferred from the Library