The Duet, No. 2

Object Details

• Artist

  James McNeill Whistler (1834-1903)

• Edition/State

  1, 1

• Label

  In this lithograph, Beatrix Whistler and her sister Ethel Birnie Philip are seated at a grand piano lit by a small lamp in the drawing room at 110 rue du Bac. Although the print has come to be known as The Duet, No. 2, recent scholarship suggests that it was drawn before a slightly later version known as The Duet.

  Whistler lithographs are identified by "C." numbers as described in The Lithographs of James McNeill Whistler (Chicago: The Art Institute of Chicago, 1998). This print is C.96.

• Provenance

  To 1903

  Rosalind Birnie-Philip (1873-1958), London, to 1903 [1]

  From 1903 to 1919

  Charles Lang Freer (1854-1919), received from Rosalind Birnie-Philip in 1903 [2]

  From 1920

  Freer Gallery of Art, gift of Charles Lang Freer in 1920 [3]

  Notes:

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

  [2] See note 1.

  [3] 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 Paris: Lithographs from the Belle Epoque, 1891-1896 (February 21 to August 15, 2004)

• Previous custodian or owner

  Rosalind Birnie Philip (1873-1958) (C.L. Freer source)

  Charles Lang Freer (1854-1919)

• Origin

  United States

• Credit Line

  Gift of Charles Lang Freer

• Type

  Print

• 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.

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Keep Exploring

• Related Resources

  collections.si.edu

• Date

  1890s

• Name

  Freer, Charles Lang, Birnie Philip, Rosalind

• Place

  United States

• Topic

  Design, Charles Lang Freer collection, Art, Pianos, American Art, Music, Interior decoration, Woman

• Culture

  Americans

• Object Type

  Prints