Blue and Gold–The Rose Azalea

Object Details

• Artist

  James McNeill Whistler (1834-1903)

• Description

  Draped female figure, holding a potted plant, posed before a folding screen; signed with the butterfly. Water color on brown paper.

• Signatures

  Yellow-orange butterfly at center of right edge.

• Paper/Support

  On rough, brown paper mounted overall to board.

• Provenance

  From 1894 to 1919

  Charles Lang Freer (1854-1919), purchased from James McNeill Whistler in 1894 [1]

  From 1920

  Freer Gallery of Art, gift of Charles Lang Freer in 1920 [2]

  Notes:

  [1] See Original Whistler List, Paintings, pg. 16, Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery Archives.

  [2] 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

  Whistler in Watercolor (May 18 to November 3, 2019)

  The Lost Symphony: Whistler & the Perfection of Art (January 16 to May 30, 2016)

  Chinamania (2010) (August 7, 2010 to August 7, 2011)

  James McNeill Whistler at the Freer Gallery of Art: Whistler as Decorator (May 11, 1984 to December 5, 1984)

  American Paintings: James McNeill Whistler (November 11, 1976 to March 18, 1981)

  Whistler Pastels and Water Colors (July 1 to July 31, 1974)

  Untitled Exhibition, Whistler Paintings and Drawings (December 14, 1955 to February 25, 1956)

  Untitled Exhibition, Works of Whistler (September 22, 1947 to April 11, 1955)

  Whistler Water Colors (January 7, 1924 to April 4, 1930)

  Whistler Pastels and Drawings, Re-arranged and some additions (January 7, 1924 to January 20, 1944)

  Panama-Pacific International Exposition (February 20 to December 4, 1915)

  Exposition des Oeuvres de James McNeill Whistler (May 1905)

  Oil Paintings, Water Colors, Pastels and Drawings: Memorial Exhibition of the Works of Mr. J. McNeill Whistler (February 23 to March 22, 1904)

  Philadelphia Water Color Club, Second Annual Exhibition (March 18 to April 1, 1903)

  The Copley Society Second Annual Exhibition of Contemporary Art (November 19 to December 19, 1902)

• Previous custodian or owner

  James McNeill Whistler (1834-1903) (C.L. Freer source)

  Charles Lang Freer (1854-1919)

• Origin

  United States

• Credit Line

  Gift of Charles Lang Freer

• Type

  Painting

• Restrictions and Rights

  Usage Conditions Apply

  There are restrictions for re-using this media. For more information, visit the Smithsonian's Terms of Use page.

  The information presented on this website may be revised and updated at any time as ongoing research progresses or as otherwise warranted. Pending any such revisions and updates, information on this site may be incomplete or inaccurate or may contain typographical errors. Neither the Smithsonian nor its regents, officers, employees, or agents make any representations about the accuracy, reliability, completeness, or timeliness of the information on the site. Use this site and the information provided on it subject to your own judgment. The National Museum of Asian Art welcomes information that would augment or clarify the ownership history of objects in their collections.

Keep Exploring

• Related Resources

  collections.si.edu

• Date

  1880s, 1890s

• Name

  Whistler, James McNeill, Freer, Charles Lang

• Place

  United States

• Topic

  Art, Iron oxide red, Screen, Bone black, Zinc white, Cadmium sulfide, Vermilion, Mounting, Yellow ocher, Charles Lang Freer collection, Mars pigment, Brown iron oxide, American Art, Raw sienna, Organic red pigment, Prussian blue, Underdrawing, Cobalt blue, Woman, Raw umber, Burnt sienna

• Culture

  Americans

• Object Type

  Paintings