The Thames

Terms of Use
Usage Conditions ApplyAt A Glance
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Period
1896 -
Geography
United States -
Material
Ink on paper -
Dimension
H x W: 26.7 x 19.5 cm (10 1/2 x 7 11/16 in) -
Accession Number
F1902.140 -
EDAN ID
edanmdm:fsg_F1902.140
Object Details
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Artist
James McNeill Whistler (1834-1903) -
Edition/State
1, 3 -
Label
Unlike the other Savoy Hotel lithographs, The Thames is a lithotint. As in Limehouse and Nocturne, Whistler used washes to draw his design directly on the stone. Whistler did not reverse the drawing, so the printed image is backwards, with Charing Cross Railway Bridge appearing at the left. As one contemporary reviewer noted, The Thames "is a particularly expressive nocturne. The slow, dull tide of the river, the dark, veiled shapes of factory chimneys and warehouses on the further shore, the sky of drifting clouds, have the poetry inherent in Whistler's view of such a scene fraught to him with beauty that touched his soul and gave it peace."Glasgow Herald, June 1, 1915, quoted in Hunterian Art Gallery, James McNeill Whistler at the Hunterian Art Gallery (Glasgow: Hunterian Art Gallery, 1990), 44.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 C161, third state. -
Provenance
To 1902Thomas Robert Way (1861-1913), London, to 1902 [1]From 1902 to 1919Charles Lang Freer (1854-1919), given by Thomas Robert Way in 1902 [2]From 1920Freer Gallery of Art, gift of Charles Lang Freer in 1920 [3]Notes:[1] According to Curatorial Remark 1 in the object record.[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 and the Thames (December 17, 2000 to June 17, 2001)Untitled Exhibition, Whistler Drawings, Etchings, and Lithographs, 1959 (April 15, 1959 to November 2, 1959)Centennial Exhibition, East Corridor (February 25, 1956 to July 10, 1958)Untitled Exhibition, Whistler Prints (December 12, 1955 to February 25, 1956)Untitled Exhibition, Whistler Etchings, Lithographs, and Drypoint (September 24, 1947 to April 11, 1955)Untitled Exhibition, Whistler Prints, East Corridor (January 5, 1944 to January 8, 1947)Untitled Exhibition, Whistler Etchings and Lithographs (April 4, 1930 to January 20, 1944)Lithographs and Lithotints by Whistler (March 23, 1925 to March 24, 1930)Special Exhibition, Whistler Etchings and Lithographs (January 14, 1924 to February 18, 1924)American Paintings, Etchings, and Lithographs. J.A.McN. Whistler (May 2, 1923 to January 7, 1924) -
Previous custodian or owner
Thomas Robert Way (1861-1913) (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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