Not on display

The Palaces

Print
1880 (published)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

In 1879 Whistler was commissioned by the Fine Art Society to make a set of etchings of Venice. This is a printmaking technique in which acid is used to bite lines in a metal plate. These lines are next filled with ink, which is then printed on to paper.

Whistler was one of the first artists to put his pencilled signature to a print. This practice grew up during the second half of the 19th century in order to identify works printed from surfaces made by the artist him- or herself, as opposed to reproductions of works originally created in other media.

Object details

Categories
Object type
Titles
  • The Palaces (assigned by artist)
  • Venice, a Series of Twelve Etchings (series title)
Materials and techniques
Etching and drypoint on paper
Brief description
'The Palaces', etching and drypoint by James McNeill Whistler, plate from Venice, a Series of Twelve Etchings, published by the Fine Art Society, London, 1880.
Physical description
Etching and drypoint by James McNeill Whistler, ‘The Palaces’, from ‘Venice, a Series of Twelve Etchings’, published by the Fine Art Society, London, 1880. Also known as ‘The First Venice Set’. View of palaces on a canal in Venetian Gothic architectural style, with gondolas moored at the water’s edge.
Dimensions
  • Plate height: 25.2cm
  • Plate width: 36cm
  • Paper height: 29.3cm
  • Paper width: 40.2cm
Credit line
Acquired from The University of Glasgow Art Collections, The Hunterian Museum, University of Glasgow in 1968
Object history
From Venice, a Series of Twelve Etchings, published by the Fine Art Society, London, 1880. Also known as ‘The First Venice Set’. W.153; K.187, 3rd state.
Subject depicted
Place depicted
Summary
In 1879 Whistler was commissioned by the Fine Art Society to make a set of etchings of Venice. This is a printmaking technique in which acid is used to bite lines in a metal plate. These lines are next filled with ink, which is then printed on to paper.

Whistler was one of the first artists to put his pencilled signature to a print. This practice grew up during the second half of the 19th century in order to identify works printed from surfaces made by the artist him- or herself, as opposed to reproductions of works originally created in other media.
Associated objects
Bibliographic references
  • Wedmore, Frederick. Whistler's Etchings, A Study and a Catalogue. London: Colnaghi & Co, 1899. No.153.
  • Kennedy, Edward G. The Etched Work of Whistler. San Francisco: Alan Wofsy Fine Arts, 1978. No.187, 3rd state.
  • Taken from Departmental Circulation Register 1968
Collection
Accession number
CIRC.638-1968

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Record createdJune 30, 2009
Record URL
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