La Fruitière de la rue de Grenelle

Maker(s)
Artist: James McNeill Whistler (1834-1903)
Historical period(s)
1894
Medium
Ink on paper
Dimensions
H x W: 22.9 x 15.5 cm (9 x 6 1/8 in)
Geography
United States
Credit Line
Gift of Charles Lang Freer
Collection
Freer Gallery of Art Collection
Accession Number
F1906.184
On View Location
Currently not on view
Classification(s)
Print
Type

Lithograph

Keywords
architecture, commerce, fruit, United States
Provenance

From at least 1906 to 1919
Charles Lang Freer (1854-1919), from at least 1906 [1]

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

Notes:

[1] See Original Whistler List, Lithographs, Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery Archives. Also, according to Curatorial Remark 2, G.D.G., 1921, in the object record: "No record existing of the time of purchase, the print was given a registration number for 1906, the year of the printed Inventory."

[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.

Previous Owner(s) and Custodian(s)

Charles Lang Freer 1854-1919

Label

The rue de Grenelle crosses the rue du Bac two blocks from the Whistlers' home, so this green-grocer's shop was probably within easy walking distance. As in his etching Rue de la Rochefoucault (F1902.136), Whistler is centrally concerned with capturing the play of light against a complex surface, exploring how it illuminates the well-dressed customer in the center foreground, reflects off the large plateglass window to the left, and sets off the shadows of the shop interior.

Published References
  • The Lithographs of James McNeill Whistler. 2 vol., Chicago and New York, 1998. pp. 438-443.
Collection Area(s)
American Art
Web Resources
Google Cultural Institute
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