"Rose and Gold: The Little Lady Sophie of Soho"

Object Details

• Artist

  Henry Wolf (1852-1916)

  James McNeill Whistler (1834-1903)

• Edition/State

  40, 1

• Provenance

  From 1904 to 1919

  Charles Lang Freer (1854-1919), purchased from Henry Wolf (1852-1916) in 1904 [1]

  From 1920

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

  Notes:

  [1] See Voucher Nos. 22 and 26, January 1904, Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery Archives. Charles Lang Freer purchased Little Sophie of Soho from the artist, James McNeill Whistler, in 1899, though the painting was not received or paid for until 1902.

  At about that time, according to a letter he wrote to Frank Walcott on November 29, 1907, Freer attempted to have the painting photographed, hiring the best photographers he could find in New York and Detroit - "but the results," he said, "were fearfully disappointing." Consequently, he allowed Henry Wolf to reproduce the painting through wood engraving. According to Burns A. Stubbs (1967), Freer commissioned the engravings on December 4, 1903, and the prints, together with the engraved wood block, were paid for in January 1904 (according to Curatorial Remark 1, Linda Merrill, January 21, 1993, in the object record).

  [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

• Previous custodian or owner

  Henry Wolf (1852-1916) (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.

  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

  1900s

• Name

  Freer, Charles Lang, Wolf, Henry

• Place

  United States

• Topic

  Charles Lang Freer collection, Art, American Art, Portraits, Woman

• Culture

  Americans

• Object Type

  Prints