Skip to main contentProvenanceThe artist
Miss R. Birnie Philip, 1903 (bequest by artist to sister-in-law)
P. & D. Colnaghi & Company, London, England, 1943
Mr. Villiers David, London, England, 1943
Christie's, New York, New York, December 6, 1985, lot 185A
Knoedler-Modarco S.A., New York, New York
Daniel J. Terra Collection, Chicago, Illinois, 1986
Terra Foundation for the Arts Collection, Chicago, Illinois, 1992
Exhibition HistoryPublished References
James Abbott McNeill Whistler
(American, 1834–1903)
A Brittany Shop with Shuttered Windows
c. 1893
Watercolor on illustration board
Image: 5 x 8 1/2 in. (12.7 x 21.6 cm)
Frame: 10 3/4 x 14 1/4 x 1 1/16 in. (27.3 x 36.2 x 2.7 cm)
Frame: 10 3/4 x 14 1/4 x 1 1/16 in. (27.3 x 36.2 x 2.7 cm)
Credit LineTerra Foundation for American Art, Daniel J. Terra Collection
Object number1992.146
SignedUnsigned
InterpretationJames McNeill Whistler’s A Brittany Shop with Shuttered Windows presents the façade of old village shop fronts by means of quickly rendered suggestions of architectural features and passersby, including two women, a little girl, and a man. One of two windows is detailed with goods set behind the divided glass, but the other window, two doorways, and figures are merely suggested through quick strokes of watercolor, reflecting the artist’s method of painting on-site to quickly capture a scene unfolding before him. Whistler used a limited range of color dominated by washes of black, animated by touches of red. Diluted washes of pale beige and gray hint at the solid walls surrounding the windows and doorways, but so faintly as to leave the impression of these features isolated against an expanse of blank paper that corresponds with the surface of the building; the edges of the sheet define the structure’s extent. Figures are treated with a corresponding economy, particularly the striding man at the center, who appears only as a headless black topcoat, accompanied by a frisking yellow dog.
Whistler probably made this watercolor during an excursion through the French province of Brittany in the summer of 1893. Accompanied by his wife, Beatrice Birnie Philip Godwin, he stopped in the medieval village of Vitré. The site was famed for its quaint old buildings and picturesque local life, which the artist recorded in small sketchbooks and lithographic drawings, as well as several watercolor paintings. Whistler’s interest in the facades of old buildings and commonplace market life dated back to the period 1879–80, when he worked in Venice creating etched views of the city’s distinctive architecture and topography, such as Fruit Stall (TF 1992.153). In the following years, he found similar subjects in Holland and England. As demonstrated by such works as Carlyle’s Sweetstuff Shop (TF 1992.147) and A Chelsea Shop (TF 1992.148) as well as A Brittany Shop with Shuttered Windows, Whistler particularly favored a head-on, close-up perspective in which windows and doors create abstract, grid-like patterns, sometimes enlivened by the generalized figures of ordinary shoppers and pedestrians.
Whistler probably made this watercolor during an excursion through the French province of Brittany in the summer of 1893. Accompanied by his wife, Beatrice Birnie Philip Godwin, he stopped in the medieval village of Vitré. The site was famed for its quaint old buildings and picturesque local life, which the artist recorded in small sketchbooks and lithographic drawings, as well as several watercolor paintings. Whistler’s interest in the facades of old buildings and commonplace market life dated back to the period 1879–80, when he worked in Venice creating etched views of the city’s distinctive architecture and topography, such as Fruit Stall (TF 1992.153). In the following years, he found similar subjects in Holland and England. As demonstrated by such works as Carlyle’s Sweetstuff Shop (TF 1992.147) and A Chelsea Shop (TF 1992.148) as well as A Brittany Shop with Shuttered Windows, Whistler particularly favored a head-on, close-up perspective in which windows and doors create abstract, grid-like patterns, sometimes enlivened by the generalized figures of ordinary shoppers and pedestrians.
Miss R. Birnie Philip, 1903 (bequest by artist to sister-in-law)
P. & D. Colnaghi & Company, London, England, 1943
Mr. Villiers David, London, England, 1943
Christie's, New York, New York, December 6, 1985, lot 185A
Knoedler-Modarco S.A., New York, New York
Daniel J. Terra Collection, Chicago, Illinois, 1986
Terra Foundation for the Arts Collection, Chicago, Illinois, 1992
Exhibition History
A Proud Heritage: Two Centuries of American Art, Terra Museum of American Art, Chicago, Illinois (organizer). Venue: Terra Museum of American Art, Chicago, Illinois, April 21–June 21, 1987. [exh. cat.]
An American Revelation: The Daniel J. Terra Collection, Terra Museum of American Art, Chicago, Illinois (organizer). Venue: Terra Museum of American Art, Chicago, Illinois, February 28–October 1, 1988.
American Painters in France, 1830–1930, Terra Museum of American Art, Chicago, Illinois (organizer). Venue: Terra Museum of American Art, Chicago, Illinois, June 14–September 3, 1989. [exh. cat.]
Regard sur James Abbott McNeill Whistler (James Abbott McNeill Whistler at a Glance), Musée d'Art Américain Giverny, France (organizer). Venue: Musée d'Art Américain Giverny, France, April 1–October 30, 1994 (on exhibit partial run: April 1–September 18, 1994).
James McNeill Whistler: Retrospective Exhibition, 1994–1995, Tate Gallery, London, England, Réunion des Musées Nationaux, Paris (Musée d'Orsay) and the National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C. (organizer). Venues: Tate Gallery, London, England, October 12, 1994–January 8, 1995; Réunion des Musées Nationaux, Paris (Musée d'Orsay), February 6–April 30, 1995; National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C., May 28–August 20, 1995. [exh. cat.]
Songs on Stone: James McNeill Whistler and the Art of Lithography, The Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois (organizer). Venues: The Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago ,Illinois, June 6–August 30, 1998; The National Gallery of Canada, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, October 1–January 3, 1999. [exh. cat.]
The Decorative Form: The Aesthetic Movement, Arts & Crafts and the Asian Influence in American Art, Terra Museum of American Art, Chicago, Illinois (organizer). Venue: Terra Museum of American Art, Chicago, Illinois, September 16–December 5, 1999.
Figures and Forms: Selections from the Terra Foundation for the Arts, Terra Museum of American Art, Chicago, Illinois (organizer). Venue: Terra Museum of American Art, Chicago, Illinois, May 9–July 9, 2000.
Héroïque et le quotidien: les artistes américains, 1820–1920 (The Extraordinary and the Everyday: American Perspectives, 1820–1920), Musée d'Art Américain Giverny, France (organizer). Venue: Musée d'Art Américain Giverny, France, April 1–November 30, 2001. [exh. cat.]
Le Passage à Paris: les artistes américains en France, 1860–1930 (Passing through Paris: American Artists in France, 1860–1930), Musée d'Art Américain Giverny, France (organizer). Venue: Musée d'Art Américain Giverny, April 1–October 31, 2005. [exh. brochure]
Le Passage à Paris: les artistes américains en France, 1860–1930 (Passing through Paris: American Artists in France, 1860–1930), Musée d'Art Américain Giverny, France (organizer). Venue: Musée d'Art Américain Giverny, April 1–October 29, 2006. [exh. brochure]
An American Revelation: The Daniel J. Terra Collection, Terra Museum of American Art, Chicago, Illinois (organizer). Venue: Terra Museum of American Art, Chicago, Illinois, February 28–October 1, 1988.
American Painters in France, 1830–1930, Terra Museum of American Art, Chicago, Illinois (organizer). Venue: Terra Museum of American Art, Chicago, Illinois, June 14–September 3, 1989. [exh. cat.]
Regard sur James Abbott McNeill Whistler (James Abbott McNeill Whistler at a Glance), Musée d'Art Américain Giverny, France (organizer). Venue: Musée d'Art Américain Giverny, France, April 1–October 30, 1994 (on exhibit partial run: April 1–September 18, 1994).
James McNeill Whistler: Retrospective Exhibition, 1994–1995, Tate Gallery, London, England, Réunion des Musées Nationaux, Paris (Musée d'Orsay) and the National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C. (organizer). Venues: Tate Gallery, London, England, October 12, 1994–January 8, 1995; Réunion des Musées Nationaux, Paris (Musée d'Orsay), February 6–April 30, 1995; National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C., May 28–August 20, 1995. [exh. cat.]
Songs on Stone: James McNeill Whistler and the Art of Lithography, The Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois (organizer). Venues: The Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago ,Illinois, June 6–August 30, 1998; The National Gallery of Canada, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, October 1–January 3, 1999. [exh. cat.]
The Decorative Form: The Aesthetic Movement, Arts & Crafts and the Asian Influence in American Art, Terra Museum of American Art, Chicago, Illinois (organizer). Venue: Terra Museum of American Art, Chicago, Illinois, September 16–December 5, 1999.
Figures and Forms: Selections from the Terra Foundation for the Arts, Terra Museum of American Art, Chicago, Illinois (organizer). Venue: Terra Museum of American Art, Chicago, Illinois, May 9–July 9, 2000.
Héroïque et le quotidien: les artistes américains, 1820–1920 (The Extraordinary and the Everyday: American Perspectives, 1820–1920), Musée d'Art Américain Giverny, France (organizer). Venue: Musée d'Art Américain Giverny, France, April 1–November 30, 2001. [exh. cat.]
Le Passage à Paris: les artistes américains en France, 1860–1930 (Passing through Paris: American Artists in France, 1860–1930), Musée d'Art Américain Giverny, France (organizer). Venue: Musée d'Art Américain Giverny, April 1–October 31, 2005. [exh. brochure]
Le Passage à Paris: les artistes américains en France, 1860–1930 (Passing through Paris: American Artists in France, 1860–1930), Musée d'Art Américain Giverny, France (organizer). Venue: Musée d'Art Américain Giverny, April 1–October 29, 2006. [exh. brochure]
Atkinson, D. Scott et al. A Proud Heritage: Two Centuries of American Art. Edited by Terry A. Neff. (exh. cat., Terra Museum of American Art). Chicago, Illinois: Terra Foundation for the Arts, 1987. Pl. T-40, p. 149 (color).
Dorment, Richard and Margaret F. MacDonald et al. James McNeill Whistler. (exh. cat., Tate Gallery). London, England: Tate Gallery, 1994. Text no. 160, pp. 240–41; ill. no. 160, p. 240 (color).
MacDonald, Margaret F. James McNeill Whistler: Drawings, Pastels, and Watercolours; A Catalogue Raisonné. New Haven, Connecticut and London, England: Yale University Press, 1995. Text no. 1365, p. 491; ill. no. 1365, p. 491 (color).
Regard sur cinq années d'expositions (Five years of Exhibitions at a Glance). Chicago, Illinois: Terra Foundation for the Arts, 1997. Text p. 77; ill. p. 76 (color).
Tedeschi, Martha and Britt Salvesen. "Songs on Stone: James McNeill Whistler and the Art of Lithography." Museum Studies 24:1 (1998): 4–135. Text pp. 79, 83 (checklist); fig. 104, p. 78 (color).
Dorment, Richard and Margaret F. MacDonald et al. James McNeill Whistler. (exh. cat., Tate Gallery). London, England: Tate Gallery, 1994. Text no. 160, pp. 240–41; ill. no. 160, p. 240 (color).
MacDonald, Margaret F. James McNeill Whistler: Drawings, Pastels, and Watercolours; A Catalogue Raisonné. New Haven, Connecticut and London, England: Yale University Press, 1995. Text no. 1365, p. 491; ill. no. 1365, p. 491 (color).
Regard sur cinq années d'expositions (Five years of Exhibitions at a Glance). Chicago, Illinois: Terra Foundation for the Arts, 1997. Text p. 77; ill. p. 76 (color).
Tedeschi, Martha and Britt Salvesen. "Songs on Stone: James McNeill Whistler and the Art of Lithography." Museum Studies 24:1 (1998): 4–135. Text pp. 79, 83 (checklist); fig. 104, p. 78 (color).