PRINTS
Whistler, James McNeill
U.S. (1834 - 1903)
Old Westminster Bridge
1859
Etching on Japan paper
3 x 8 in. (7.6 x 20.3 cm) plate mark size; 4 x 9 in. (10.2 x 22.9 cm) sheet size
Stimson Collection, gift of Dorothy Stimson Bullitt
FA 77.180

Whistler was very aware of his naturalist forebears, Wenceslaus Hollar and William Hogarth, who etched the city of London in the 17th and 18th centuries, using the clear dark line of the topographer. Many of Hollar's scenic views along the river anticipate Whistler's Thames etchings with their foreground boats, wharves, and a distant view of the city. -- Label copy for James McNeill Whistler: A Dreamer Apart, Reed Gallery, March 27 - June 15, 1990.